Protecting the Protector
by ReluctantSlashFan
Summary: The knights protect Merlin for a change.
1. The Baron

**I so enjoy writing this quick one-shots.**

**So, thanks for reading, leave me a comment if you can, and the only thing I own is my evil OC.**

**See ya!**

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The entire castle heard the rumors about Baron Nicolas's reputation with servants. He was a nasty, vicious master who never had a servant for longer than six months. A few quit, most weren't so lucky, but it was all circumstantial at best; no one could ever get proof.

When bruises started showing up on servants, Arthur assigned Leon and Lancelot to keep an eye on Nicolas, but they could never catch him in the act, and the servants wouldn't tell who was hitting them. And since Arthur couldn't very well make him leave without cold, hard proof he had to just wait out the rest of the Baron's week and keep as many of the servants away from him as possible; until bruises started appearing on Merlin.

Elyan was the first to notice them, but when he asked Merlin what happened he merely shrugged and said he ran into something. He said the same thing to the rest of the knights and Arthur, but Merlin was a horrible liar on the best of days and it took the joint effort of Gwaine, Lancelot, and a trip to the tavern to drag the truth out of him.

The following night, as Baron Nicolas was walking back to the castle from the tavern, he nearly ran into Lancelot. Apologizing, he tried to walk around the knight, but he easily moved with him. With a small sigh, he tried to turn around, but stopped when he found Gwaine standing directly behind him. With a deep breath, he tried to take a left, but Elyan was blocking his path while Percival appeared on his right.

"Can I help you?" he questioned eyeing the knights warily.

"It's not what we can do for you," Lancelot responded crossing his arms.

"It's about what _you_ can do for us," Percival remarked, one hand hovering over his sword.

"What are you…?"

"We kindly ask you to vacate the premises," Gwaine stated softly, a forced grin on his face.

"I dare say, Prince Arthur…"

"Isn't here," Elyan cut in, speaking slowly, making a show to glance around.

"I will not be spoken to by a group of peasants…"

"What about me?" Leon asked suddenly, appearing from the shadows. Nicolas turned in a full circle, eyes darting from each knight. "W-what do…?"

"You will leave…" Leon started taking a step towards the Baron.

"…and never come back," Gwaine continued mirroring the blond knight.

"And if we catch wind of you abusing anymore servants…" Elyan followed suit, moving forward a step.

"…and we will," Lancelot commented softly.

"We will not hesitate to make your life a living hell," Percival finished wrapping his hand around his sword's hilt.

After the knights saw Baron Nicolas off, with or without a few well placed bruises of his own, they headed back towards the castle only to stop when they noticed Arthur standing on the steps, arms crossed, almost as if he were waiting for them.

"Men," he greeted stiffly, his eyes shifting from each of his knights. "Nice night?"

"Yes, very," Gwaine responded, glancing up. "Very starry."

"Uh-huh." Arthur nodded, glancing up himself. He then looked back at his men and said, "I take it Baron Nicolas had to leave early."

"Yes," the men chorused, nodding.

Arthur merely smirked, unfolded his arms, and walked back into the castle. Before the doors closed on him, they knights heard him say, "Good work, men."

**Merlin**

Merlin was helping Arthur into his armor the next morning, wincing slightly when each move sent a jolt of pain through his body. Working on his gauntlets, he commented, "I haven't seen Baron Nicolas today." He couldn't quite hide the relief in those words, but he figured if Arthur heard it he chose to ignore it.

Instead, he shrugged and replied, "He had to leave early. Urgent business; we probably won't be seeing him for a long, long time."

"Good, sire," Merlin muttered stepping away from Arthur. At the raised eyebrows, he hurriedly said, "N-not good, good. Just, good that he…" his face flushed red. "It's just…" he trailed off, walking away to get Arthur's sword.

Merlin grabbed the sword, turning to hand it to Arthur, backing up a step when he found the prince standing a few inches from him. As a hand clamped down on the younger man's shoulder, Arthur said, "The next time somebody is giving you problems. Don't hesitate to come to me." He then released Merlin, grabbed his sword, and walked out of the room, leaving the young warlock standing in the middle of the room with a worried look on his face. He may have finally figured out what he had said at the tavern the night before.

"Are you coming or what?" Arthur asked ducking his head back into the room.

"Erm, yeah," Merlin replied nodding. He followed the prince out of the room. "Say, Arthur…"


	2. The Wyvern

**Is there a logical reason why I wrote this chapter? Nope. I just thought I'd give you guys something to show how much I appreciate all the favorites this story has gotten. So, thanks guys and I hope you enjoy this bonus chapter.**

**Also thanks to those who reviewed, too. You guys are just as amazing.**

**So, thanks for reading.**

**Bye!**

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The wyvern had come out of nowhere, slamming into Merlin's side before Gwaine and Lancelot had a chance to get their swords out. The young warlock hit the ground hard, his head impacting with the dirt floor with an audible _thud_, dazing him enough to give the wyvern the upper hand. Easily, it pinned him to the ground, snarling as the knights slowly began approaching it.

Gwaine and Lancelot exchanged quick looks, silently communicating, both agreeing to come at the thing at two sides. With quick nods, they split up, Gwaine going in high while Lancelot went low. The wyvern had no intention of giving up Merlin, hovering almost protectively over its prey, snarling again at the two bothersome creatures as its tail swished back and forth, jaws trying and failing to rip open the knights.

Gwaine slammed his sword into the wyvern's neck, causing the creature to almost scream in pain before sending the knight backwards with its tail. Gwaine hit a tree with a near bone shattering crunch, biting his tongue as he crashed into the ground, too dazed to move.

Lancelot swung his sword up, into the wyvern's stomach. It snarled in agony, head thrashing back and forth, knocking into Lancelot. The knight flew back, hitting a slowly recovering Gwaine, sending both men to the ground.

The wyvern bent over Merlin, the young warlock succumbing to his injuries, his breathing slow and pulse a little thready, blood pooling around his head, one of his arms at an unnatural angle. He was the perfect prey, the exact way the wyvern liked them: unconscious.

It opened its jaw, ready to take a bite out of the warlock, but a war cry caught its attention just as a figure landed on its back.

Percival slammed his sword through the top of the wyvern's head and right through its jaw, barely missing Merlin. It struggled for a second, clearly stunned by what happened, before slowly falling to its side.

Percival picked himself up, very much aware of Gwaine and Lancelot struggling to their feet. He made sure they were standing before kneeling down next to Merlin. The younger man's arm was clearly broken, and his head probably needed to be stitched up. And that was just the visible injuries; who knew what was going on inside Merlin.

"We need to get him back to Gaius," Lancelot announced, paying no mind to his freely bleeding side and his clearly dislocated shoulder.

"I agree," Gwaine murmured holding a severely bleeding nose with his right hand, his left arm wrapped around his torso.

Carefully, Percival collected Merlin into his arms and the trio of knights slowly started walking back towards Camelot.

"I just thought of somethings," Gwaine started slowly, moving a branch aside for Percival, "Arthur's gonna have our heads for this."

"We know," Lancelot and Percival replied.

"Just thought you ought to know."


	3. The Lady

**With some convincing, this may actually become a series, but for now, since a lot of you wanted another chapter, I wrote this because inspiration is apparently on my side tonight.**

**So, thanks for those who favorited, reviewed, and alerted last chapter. You guys are awesome, and I'd really love to hear from you again.**

**As for the characters, I only own the OCs.**

**See ya!**

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Lady Gretchen-despite her father's insistence that she was a good girl-had a habit of flirting with everyone after she had a few goblets of wine. She didn't care about gender, she didn't care whether they were married or not, and she definitely didn't care about status. Usually it was harmless fun, and a female servant normally took her to her room before anything could happen, but tonight she seemed more rambunctious than ever and she had set her sights on a certain manservant.

Twice she had summoned Merlin over to her, but Arthur, knowing how much of a trouble magnet his manservant was (plus good help was hard to come by, and if Gretchen's father killed Merlin Arthur would just have to break in a new servant) had refrained from sending him and another servant helped her instead.

After the third failed attempt, and really frustrated, she waited until dinner was over and, after ditching her escort, lingered outside Merlin's quarters until the warlock appeared around the corner. He skidded to a halt when he spotted her, his blue eyes widening.

"Hello," he greeted awkwardly, taking a step back when she moved towards him.

"You're a very bad boy, Merlin," she slurred with a loopy grin on her face. "I," _hic, "_needed your assistance all," _hic, "_night."

"I'm s-sorry," Merlin stammered hitting a wall, "but Arthur needed my help." He should have just put some type of spell on her, maybe the same one he had used on Lady Vivian, but he also ran the risk of someone coming around the corner, so he held off. Besides, she looked about ready to fall over; he could just wait her out and find a nearby knight to carry her back to her room

"I'm sure he did," she murmured running a finger down his chest, "but I," _hic, "_needed it more."

"Perhaps you should go back to your chambers," Merlin suggested with a sheepish smile. "You do have an early day tomorrow."

Gretchen pouted, "You don't _like_ me?"

"I'm… I'm sure you're a very nice girl," Merlin replied quickly, glancing around, really wishing someone would come around the corner to help him. "I'm just saying you should return to your chambers."

"Will you walk me?" she asked hopefully, her eyes lightening up.

"I'm not sure…"

"Please," she begged, pouting again, "I would be so," _hic, "_grateful."

"I don't…"

"Fine," she scoffed, turning to leave, but tripping over her gown. Instinctually, Merlin caught her before she could hit the floor, just as her father and Arthur turned the corner.

"What are you doing?" Lady Gretchen's father exclaimed stalking towards Merlin. He snatched his daughter away from the warlock, his hand hovering over his sword. "Arthur, did you see what your _servant_ was doing? Taking advantage of my daughter…"

"What?" Merlin balked, his eyes widening. "N-no, I was…"

"I want to see this man punished," the older man continued, ignoring Merlin.

"Daniel, please, don't you see what was happening," Arthur said quickly, smoothly, shooting Merlin a 'keep quiet' type look. "Merlin was obviously about to escort Lady Gretchen back to her chambers."

"Why was he touching her," King Daniel demanded, glaring at Merlin.

"No doubt she fell, he caught her. I'm sure Merlin was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Right?" Arthur glanced at his servant, raising an eyebrow, telling him to respond.

"Yes," Merlin said softly, watching King Daniel's sword closely.

The older king eyed Merlin for a long moment before nodding and saying, "Of course, my apologies, Arthur." Of course he didn't apologize to Merlin, but the warlock was one-hundred percent okay with that; just as long as he could avoid the stocks or a flogging.

"Come, I'll escort you and your daughter back to her chambers," Arthur stated softly and Daniel nodded, helping a slowly waking Gretchen away without a backwards glance at Merlin.

"Arthur, I…" Merlin started.

The blond shook his head, fighting a smirk, and said, "I expect my stables mucked out by tomorrow afternoon." He then walked away.


	4. The Migraine

**You know what, screw it. This has officially become a series. So, I'm just gonna keep writing chapters until I run out of ideas. Plus, if there's an idea you want to see written drop me a PM and I'll totally attempt it. Are you guys happy? You've broken me :)**

**So, thanks for the reviews, alerts, and favorites last chapter. You guys are amazing and drop me a comment if you can.**

**Thanks for reading and see ya!**

* * *

Leon was the first to notice that all was not well with Merlin. The poor boy was parchment pale, had dark, ugly circles under his eyes, and he seemed to be moving slower than usual. He also seemed to be rubbing his forehead, wincing when he came into contact with anything bright: from the sunlight to a dimly lit candle.

"Did you notice Merlin's been acting strange today," Leon muttered to Gwaine as the two stood outside the gate, keeping an eye out for any Saxons, Cenred's men, or any other potential threats.

"How so?" Gwaine asked curiously, a worry lilt in his voice.

"He just looks sick," Leon replied softly.

"Sick like how?"

"Just sick. When I asked him about it he said he was fine and walked away. You don't think he caught that flu that was going around a few weeks ago, do you?"

"He did help Gaius out," Gwaine consented with a shrug but still couldn't keep the concern off his face.

"Maybe we should ask him," Leon suggested just as their replacements started heading towards them.

"He's Merlin. Do you honestly think he'll answer us?"

"No, but he might answer to Arthur," Leon replied with a shrug.

"Then let's go talk to his majesty," Gwaine retorted sardonically, ignoring the small glare Leon threw him as the two started back towards the castle.

Arthur was in the middle of doing paperwork when the two knights stepped into his chambers. He held up a finger, putting the final touches on one, rather nasty report, before looking up and asking, "How do you spell crisis? I keep thinking there are two 'c's' in it, but _Mer_lin," the blond shot a look at the spot where the dark-haired servant usually stood, "says there are two 's's' in it. Who's right?"

"I think Merlin is, _sire_," Gwaine murmured barely holding a smirk at bay.

"Is a crisis pending, sire?" Leon asked before Arthur realized Gwaine was mocking him.

"No, but I'm working on several defenses just in case." He wrote a few more words down before giving the knights his undivided attention. "What can I do for you?"

"It's Merlin, sire," Leon started slowly, folding his arms behind his back.

"What about Merlin? Has he been skiving on his duties again? I swear, today I found him napping on the job. He's mucking my stables now."

Gwaine opened his mouth to protest, but Leon quickly spoke over him. "No, sire, he's not skiving. We believe Merlin may be sick."

"Sick?" Arthur gave the two knights an incredulous look, one eyebrow raised. "And what made you believe this?"

Before Leon could respond, Elyan burst into the king's chambers through the open door. "Sire," he gasped gesturing behind him, "Percival found…"

"What?" Arthur was half standing, a worried look on his face.

"Merlin, sire, he collapsed in the stables."

Leon was certain Arthur murmured a word most kings' shouldn't use before sprinting out of his quarters, the knights hot on his heels. "Where is he?" Arthur called over his shoulder, taking the stairs down two at a time.

"Percival was carrying him to Gaius last I checked," Elyan replied quickly. Arthur nodded, redirecting his route to Gaius' chambers.

The foursome burst into Gaius' chambers just as the older man was shutting Merlin's door. Percival, who had been pacing seconds beforehand, stopped suddenly, turning his attention to Gaius.

"How is he?" Arthur demanded before anyone else could speak.

"He doesn't have that flu, does he?" Leon questioned worriedly.

"He's suffering from a migraine," Gaius replied softly, sifting through his potions. "He says he's been suffering through the pain all day, but while cleaning _your_ stables," Gaius turned 'the eyebrows of doom' on Arthur, "he became dizzy and collapsed."

"See, we told you," Gwaine murmured to a guilty looking Arthur.

"I didn't know," the king murmured, looking down at his boots.

"He'll be fine," Gaius informed the knights and the king, finally finding the potion he needed. "He just needs some rest."

"And he can have it," Arthur said quickly, stepping forward. "He has the rest of today and tomorrow off."

"It's not your fault," Gaius stated quietly, after a beat, no longer angry at Arthur, looking far older than his seventy-some years. "He _needs_ to be more vocal when he's ill."

"When will we be able to see him?" Gwaine asked curiously.

"Maybe tomorrow," Gaius replied already starting towards Merlin's room. "Be quiet when you leave please."

The knights traipsed out of the room, but when Leon looked back he noticed Arthur take a seat at Gaius' table. Barely holding a smile at bay, he had a feeling his king most likely wasn't going to leave until he _knew_, one-hundred percent, that Merlin was going to be okay.

"Good night, sire," Leon said softly before shutting the door behind him.


	5. The Nap

**This chapter is just features Merlin and Arthur because that's my favorite dynamic on the show, and I can't get enough of writing scenes between the two.**

**You guys gave me some awesome ideas, and I will be sure to use them in the next few chapters.**

**Until then, thanks to those who reviewed, alerted, and favorited, and otherwise read last chapter. This series is actually really fun to write.**

**So, thanks for reading, drop me a comment if you can, and I still don't own 'em.**

**Bye!  
**

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It was drizzling, beads of rain water mixing with the sweat running down Arthur's face as he hacked through a stubborn patch of vines. He heard Merlin stumble behind him, but chose to ignore the younger man; already used to the fact that Merlin seemed to have two left feet.

"Are you keeping up, _Mer_lin?" Arthur called over his shoulder, finally breaking free of the vines.

"Arthur, can we stop?" Merlin asked curiously, ignoring the blond's question, sounding slightly out of breath.

"We're almost there." The blond kept going, very much aware of Merlin trudging behind him, abruptly stopping when he caught sight of a deer grazing about a hundred yards away. Merlin must not have been paying attention, his full weight slamming into Arthur's back and sending the blond stumbling forward, the sudden noise frightening the deer.

As if took off, Arthur rolled his eyes and turned to shout at his servant, only to catch him as he collapsed into Arthur's chest. Worried, Arthur lowered himself and his manservant to the ground, lightly tapping his face.

"Merlin," he said softly, waiting for a response. "Merlin, wake up."

"Mm," the younger man mumbled, turning into Arthur's hand.

"This is _not_ the time to take a nap," Arthur grumbled, gently shaking his servant. "Wake up."

"'s too early."

"It's _not _too early. You _just_ fell asleep."

Merlin merely burrowed deeper into Arthur's tunic and immediately started snoring again. The blond very nearly grabbed his manservant's shoulders, intending to give them a hard shove, but he stopped when he noticed the dark, ugly circles under the younger man's eyes and the way his face looked unnaturally haggard. It made Arthur wonder when the last time Merlin had slept.

"If you tell anyone about this…" Arthur started softly, letting the threat linger in the air, carefully moving both himself and Merlin backwards so he could lean his back against a tree, using the canopy of leaves to block most of the rain. "You are going to be the death of me, _Mer_lin." His fingers hesitating over the younger man's hair before he dropped his hand to his side.

Leaning his head back, he vowed to have a long chat with Merlin about letting Arthur know when he needed a break so something like this didn't happen again.


	6. The Bandits

**Hey guys. So, this is for Ms. Fairweather and one of my guest reviewers. They wanted a bandit storyline, and this is what I came up with. Thanks for the suggestion guys, and I do have a few more to fulfill (plus a kickass line I need to add, and I promise I am going to add it when I find the correct spot). **

**So, thanks for reviewing, alerting, and favoriting. I hope you guys enjoyed this and I'd love to hear from you again.**

**Thanks for reading, I still don't own anyone Merlin related, and seriously if you have an idea you want to see me attempt, let me know.**

**Thanks again**

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Merlin had been missing for six hours, eleven minutes, and thirty-two seconds (if anyone asked _Gwaine _counted) and Arthur had been tracking him for six hours and eleven minutes. A group of bandits had attacked while their hunting party had been taking a break, leaving three knights dead, two wounded, and Merlin dragged away into the rapidly darkening forest.

"Arthur, we may have to stop for the night," Leon suggested softly, stopping next to Arthur's horse, squinting into the darkness.

"Not until Merlin is found," Arthur replied determined, eyes peeled for any sudden movements.

"I second that," Gwaine concurred, pulling his steed up beside Arthur's. "If you want to stop, Leon, I'm all for it, but I'm not abandoning Merlin."

"I wasn't suggesting…" Leon trailed off, shaking his head. "Let's keep going." He motioned for the remaining knights to follow, and the small group followed Arthur further into the forest.

They spotted an orange glow in the distance, and the knights dismounted their horses, continuing on foot. Arthur signaled for Elyan, Leon, and Gwaine to go one way while he and Percival went the other. They split up, surrounding the small camp, listening to a few drunken voices, one particularly loud.

"Dance servant boy, dance," the voice snarled and loud guffaws followed.

Arthur held up a hand, halting Percival in his tracks, and peeked around a tree. He watched as the leader (or he figured it was the leader) shot arrows at Merlin's feet. The man in question looked exhausted, hunched over inside a too small cage, holding his bloody arm as he tried to jump away from the arrows.

"Maybe we should jus' kill 'im," another bandit suggested, toying with his dagger, sneering at Merlin.

"Malcolm, what did I say about giving orders," the leader snarled, turning his crossbow on the other man.

"Don'," Malcolm grumbled darkly, backing away from the leader, his eyes trained on the bow.

"Exactly," the leader hissed, turning back to Merlin. "Where's your great king now, Servant Boy?"

"Behind that tree," Merlin responded softly, his eyes flickering up to meet Arthur's. He smirked and Arthur knew that was his cue to attack.

"What are you…?" the bandit leader cut off when the knights rushed him and his men. Since half were already drunker than Gwaine on a Friday night, they barely had time to get their swords before the knight of Camelot were upon them.

Three of the bandits were dead, bodies littering the forest floor, before the rest could get to their feet. Arthur engaged the leader, the latter abandoning his crossbow for his sword. Their swords clanged together, metal upon metal, each blow more vicious than the last.

The battle went on for several long, tiring minutes, but eventually the knights managed to either kill or chase off a majority of the bandits. However, they barely had time to pat themselves on the back, when they heard a familiar shout of surprise.

As one, the knights turned to see Malcolm holding his dagger to Merlin's neck, dragging the pale servant backwards with him. He sneered, his yellow teeth catching the light from the fire, and he snarled, "Come any closer and I'll slit 'is throat all the way to 'is giant ears." To prove his point, he slowly dragged the edge across Merlin's neck, barely touching the soft flesh, but still making small beads of blood pool and slowly dribble down his pale skin.

"Let him go," Gwaine snarled stepping forward, but Percival slammed into his chest, sending him back a step, murmuring words of warning to him.

"Listen, Malcolm, this won't end well for you," Arthur said softly, trying to stay calm, eyes settling on Merlin. "You kill him and they won't find your body. We'll make sure of it." He widened his eyes slightly, before letting them quickly dart to the abandoned bow, silently conveying a message to Merlin. The younger man nodded after a few seconds, readying himself.

"I don' really care," Malcolm snapped taking another step back.

"I think Merlin might," Arthur retorted with a short nod at the servant. The younger man took the cue, slamming his elbow into Malcolm's face. The bandit screamed in pain, letting Merlin go in surprise.

The next few seconds were confusing. Arthur stooped down, grabbing the crossbow off the ground. Lucky for him, the leader had left a bow in it, and he shot at Malcolm. The arrow flew at the bandit just as he threw his dagger.

There were several shouts, a heavy weight slammed into Arthur, and the king found himself colliding with the ground, in a tangled mess of limbs, not sure which way was up and which was down. Finally, after a few seconds of chaos, he was able to sit up, his eyes widening when he spotted the dagger sticking out of Merlin's side.

"Merlin!" Arthur shouted, scrambling to his knees, crawling over to his servant's side. "Merlin." He rested his hand against the younger man's neck, feeling a steady pulse beat against his palm. "Merlin, stay with me."

"Arthur?" Merlin murmured his eyes half opening, blood leaking from a cut just above his eyebrow, trailing down his pale face. "W-what happened?"

"You took a dagger to the side, you idiot," Arthur replied softly, shrugging his cloak off. He bunched it up, pressing it into Merlin's side, trying to ignore the warm liquid spilling from the wound. "Y-you're going to be fine."

"I know," Merlin said softly, looking down at the dagger. "It didn't hit anything vital."

"And how do you know this?" Arthur demanded, worried for Merlin's mental state.

"Because it hit your canteen," Merlin responded glancing at the bunched up cloak. Sure enough, when Arthur lowered his cloak, he realized the liquid spilling from the 'wound' was actually water.

"How did you…?"

"They weren't exactly the smartest bunch." Slowly, Merlin sat up, putting a hand to his still bleeding head, using the other to pull the dagger out of the canteen. "I think I have a concussion," he commented pulling his hand away and studying the blood staining his palm.

"I should start making you wear a helmet," Arthur grumbled pushing himself to his feet. He offered Merlin a hand, the younger man taking it. When he was standing, Merlin wavered, Arthur's grasp the only thing keeping him upright.

"It wouldn't do much good," Gwaine stated moving to take the other half of Merlin's weight. "He'd probably knock himself out with it."

"Please stop, you're making me laugh so hard," Merlin retorted sarcastically, earning an eye roll from Arthur, a smirk from Gwaine, and a chuckle from the rest of the knights.

"I say we make camp where we left the horses and make sure your hard head isn't too damaged," Percival suggested gently ruffling Merlin's hair, causing the younger man to flinch slightly. "Sorry."

"You know," Merlin started as the small group headed back to their horses, "if you stopped bringing me on these hunting trips this wouldn't have…"

"You're not getting out of the next hunting trip, _Mer_lin," Arthur interrupted with a smirk.

"That's just not fair."


	7. The Cook

**This is for Nerdofall and daily-chan. **

**Nerdofall: I'm not sure if this is what you wanted exactly, but I did try my best. **

**daily-chan also mentioned something about him getting attacked by dogs or the head servant. I know Cook isn't exactly the head servant or dogs, but I hope this works for you.**

**Thanks for reviewing, alerting, and favoriting last chapter. Like I said before, if you want to see me attempt something just PM me, and thanks for reading.**

**Remember, if Merlin were mine I'd be one happy gal and d****rop me a comment if you can.**

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Gwen had seen Merlin early Sunday morning, getting yelled at by Cook. He nodded at everything she said, stammering apologies, clutching tightly to the empty tray in his hands. Eyes narrowed slightly, Gwen stepped forward to say something, but froze when she noticed Gwaine heading towards Cook and Merlin.

"What's going on here, Merlin?" the knight asked curiously, one arm snaking around Merlin's shoulders, his brown eyes settling on Cook.

"This imbecile spilled my porridge all over the floor," Cook screeched, gesturing to a goopy mess splattered across the stone floor, a copper pan sitting upside down, smack dab in the middle of the mess.

"I believe I was asking Merlin," Gwaine snarked back, his eyes flicking to the younger man. "So, what happened?"

"N-nothing," Merlin stuttered, his blue eyes downcast. "I was getting Arthur's breakfast," he started, voice still slightly shaky. In fact, if Gwen looked closer, his whole body seemed to be shaking, but she knew it couldn't be because of Cook. Cook hadn't scared Merlin in years, her bark way worse than her bite. Something was definitely going on.

"And he spilled my porridge," Cook snarled brandishing the stirring spoon in her hand.

"Shut it," Gwaine snapped, glaring at the woman. He then turned back to Merlin and gently asked, "What happened next?"

"Well, I was looking for a plate, you know for Arthur's food, when I got a little dizzy," Merlin explained softly, looking up at Gwaine. His face was paler than usual and he looked about ready to fall down. Gwen had a feeling, if Gwaine hadn't been holding him up, Merlin probably would have collapsed already.

"Merlin," Gwaine started carefully, quietly, virtually ignoring Cook. She huffed, muttering about terrible servants. "When's the last time you ate?"

"Um…" Merlin's eyes fluttered closed and for a moment Gwen actually thought he passed out, but to her immense relief they reopened. Her relief was short lived when he merely shrugged, shaking his head.

"Okay, here's what's going to happen," Gwaine started slowly, wrestling the tray out of Merlin's hands. He placed it next to the stove, steering Merlin towards a pan cooking on the stove. "We're going to get you something to eat."

"But Arthur…"

"Can wait," Gwen stated, finally stepping forward, casting a dark look Cook's way before moving towards Merlin and Gwaine. "Or, better yet, I'll take him his breakfast."

"But you're the queen, you shouldn't…"

"Merlin, I was a servant for many years. I may be the queen now, but I still know how to bring people breakfast," Gwen stated kindly. "Arthur _can_ survive one day without you."

"I doubt that," Merlin muttered and Gwaine chuckled. Gwen smiled at his words before moving towards the a plate, she proceeded to load it with food. She could tell that Merlin thought it was for Arthur, but his eyes flashed with uncertainty when she offered him the food.

"I won't take no for an answer," she stated stubbornly. "You will eat every last bite, and Gwaine will tell me if you don't."

"To right I will," Gwaine agreed nodding his head.

"T-thank you," Merlin said carefully taking the plate from Gwen, his hands shaking slightly. Gwaine nodded at Gwen, she smiled, and then the knight proceeded to steer Merlin out of the kitchen, taking his plate when he nearly dropped it.

"What about my floor?" Cook asked sharply and Gwen turned to look at her, eyebrows furrowed, and Cook seemed to wilt slightly. "I-I'll get the mop."


	8. The Drunkard

**This is dedicated to two different readers: Kermit Rainbow Connection asked for a rowdy customer while 1monster2 asked for a Percival chapter. So, here you guys go, and I really hope you enjoyed it.**

**I keep trying to write serious Merlin whump, but my muse just doesn't want to hurt him. That or I am afraid it'll turn into a really long, multi-chapter fic. Oh, well.**

**So, thanks for the reviews, alerts, and favorites last chapter. I really appreciate them. Remember, the characters are not mine. And leave me a comment if you can (plus anymore ideas because, let's face it, you guys have a hell of a lot more good ideas than I do).**

**See ya!**

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Percival hummed an old sea shanty, heading back to the castle after a long night of guarding the gate, when he heard someone screaming obscenities. At first, a smirk on his face, he figured some man had gotten caught cheating on his wife (serves him right), but the smirk slipped off his face when he heard a familiar voice say, "G-Gaius says more will…"

"Gaius jus' doesn' understand," a croaky, slurred voice exclaimed and Percival heard a bottle smash. "Get out and tell 'im I _need_ it."

"I heard you the first time," Merlin tried to reason, "but Gaius says anymore will be fatal to…"

"Shut up!" the croaky voice screamed, another bottle smashing. "Gaius doesn' understand that…"

"Sir, I really don't think you…" Merlin's trailed off into a cry of pain, and Percival knew he had heard enough. He stalked towards the voices, bursting into a small hut just in time to see an elderly man, clearly drunk, standing over Merlin, a slowly dripping knife dangling in his hand.

Merlin lay on the floor, clutching a freely bleeding arm. His blue eyes darted over to Percival before settling on the man again. He glanced up at Percival and screeched, "Yer breaking an' entering into my home!"

"And you just hurt my friend," Percival said dangerously, fighting the urge to remove his sword from his scabbard. Slowly, he ducked down to help Merlin up, not so subtly pushing the smaller man behind him, giving the old man a steely glare. "He's clearly told you, you can't have any more of whatever you want, and if you can't respect that then you need to find another physician to help you."

"My family was a well-respected…"

"Obviously it isn't anymore," Percival snarled slowly backing up, pushing Merlin out the door with him. He made to beckon a couple guards over, but Merlin quickly grabbed his arm and dragged him away, telling him not to bother.

"But Merlin…"

"Just let it go," he insisted continuing to drag the knight away until they were halfway across the courtyard. "I'm fine, he barely hurt me. Just let it go." With a sigh, against his better judgment, Percival nodded. "Thank you."

They walked in silence for a few moments, but the silence was broken by a small hiss and Merlin asking, "Can we _not_ tell Gaius about this? Strictly speaking, I wasn't supposed to be there today, but he had been busy and…"

"Merlin, I think Gaius would want to know one of his customers attacked you," Percival pointed out slowly, but still steered the younger man towards his chambers, walking right past the staircase to Gaius and Merlin's chambers.

"I know," Merlin replied softly, letting his arm go just long enough to untie his neckerchief. "But Gaius has been under a lot of stress lately and I just don't want to add to it."

"Alright, but I'm going to help you with that," Percival agreed nodding towards the wound. Merlin nodded, albeit a little reluctantly, and pressed the red cloth into his arm. "By the way, what did he want?"

"I don't even know," Merlin replied shrugging, "but Gaius swears anymore will kill him."

"Not if I get to him first," Percival muttered lightly touching his sword, half turned to head back to the man's hut.

"Please don't," Merlin begged moving to stand in front of the knight. "Please, just leave him be. He's a drunkard, lonely is all, and in a lot of pain. I don't want to add to that and I _definitely_ don't want you to add to it. So, please don't tell Arthur, either."

"Merlin…"

"I'm fine," he insisted stubbornly. "It's barely a cut."

Again, against his better judgment, Percival agreed, but he couldn't help thinking that Merlin was too damn selfless for his own good.


	9. The Blow-Up

**Okay, this was originally supposed to be a prompt for Don'tEvenBlink (she asked for something along the lines of the knights saving Merlin from himself), and it seemed to turn into Gwen saving Merlin and Arthur's friendship from themselves. So, yeah, sorry for completely screwing up your prompt D.E.B.**

**Anyway, thanks for the reviews and alerts and favorites last chapter. You guys are amazing, as always, and I really hope to hear from you again.**

**These characters are still not mine, thanks again for reading, and I am going to get your ideas soon. I just got to figure out how to work them into the story.**

**See ya!**

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It had been one of those weeks. The one where everything he did went wrong, everywhere he seemed to turn someone was yelling at him, and no one seemed to be on his side. A complete pile of shite if anyone asked Merlin-which no one did-and he was finally glad it was Sunday.

Sunday was the only day Arthur gave him off, it was his day off to do whatever he pleased (within reason of course because Gaius and Arthur both forbade him from going out drinking with Gwaine ever again), and he had been planning to not leave his chambers all day and sleep. Glorious, mind healing sleep; his friend, his best mate, the one thing that was on his side no matter what he did, and he was finally going to use his entire Sunday to be a complete and total sloth. That is until Arthur decided to drag him on another one of his infamous hunting trips.

Merlin didn't know why he was so surprised. The week hadn't gone his way, so why should his day off be any different? So, Sunday morning he awoken by pounding on his door and Arthur calling, "Get up you lazy Arse! My horse needs to be saddled before we leave."

Grumbling, Merlin threw his blankets off of him, swung his legs out of his nice, warm bed, and proceeded to stub his toe on his nightstand. Cursing, hoping he didn't break his toe, and ignoring Arthur's demanded question of what had happened Merlin stood up. He tested his foot; made sure he actually could walk on it, and then proceeded to get dressed.

He was just moving towards the door, hopping on one foot as he tried to pull his boot on, when Arthur became impatient and threw the door open. It smacked into Merlin's head, sending his reeling backwards and onto the floor.

"What is taking…?" Arthur trailed off, eyebrows furrowing as he spotted Merlin lying on the floor. "Why are you on the floor?"

"Because you're a prat," Merlin responded propping himself up on his elbows.

"Better a prat than an idiot," Arthur retorted crossing his arms, smirking at his own joke. "Now hurry up. I want to be gone before sunrise." He then stalked out of Merlin's room, closing the door behind them. In frustration, Merlin snatched his pillow off his bed and hurtled it at the door.

**Merlin**

Once dressed and ready for the trip, Merlin rushed out of his room. He stumbled past Gaius' sleeping form, envying his uncle, and grabbed a couple of biscuits left over from last night's dinner before heading out the door.

He rushed down the stairs, managing to slip on something at the bottom, and proceeded to crash into an unsuspecting maid. Towels and linens went everywhere as both servants fell to the floor. Staggering to his feet, Merlin stammered a series of apologies, ignoring the way his ankle twinged when he put pressure on it.

"It's alright," the maid stated, waving her hand. The staff was already well aware of Merlin's clumsiness, and they had long since stopped complaining about it. But Merlin had been sure he was getting better, really he had been. This was just not his week.

He helped the maid pick up her laundry, stuffing it all in the basket she had been carrying, and handed it back to her with one last apology before continuing down to the stables, limping slightly on his left ankle.

No one bothered to ask what had happened when Merlin approached the knights and Arthur. Merlin didn't blame them, they all looked bleary eyed and pale, obviously he wasn't the only person Arthur awoke so early.

"What the hell took you so long?" Arthur demanded from his horse, no doubt having the stable boy put his saddle on.

"Nothing," Merlin muttered quietly, heading towards his own horse. He pulled himself up, into the saddle, barely keeping a hiss at bay when he put more pressure on his ankle. Without waiting for him to tie his things to the saddle, Arthur and the rest of the knights already took off. "Of course," he mumbled to himself, quickly securing his bag and following them, hoping his bad luck streak would wear off soon.

**Merlin**

Unfortunately for him it hadn't. In fact, by mid-afternoon, it seemed to have gotten worse since the morning. Merlin had succeeded in scaring off five different animals, burning lunch, and not securing Arthur's horse well-enough so it wandered away. After wasting fifty-minutes looking for the damn thing, Merlin was ready to just go home before this day could get any worse.

"Here, _Mer_lin, do something useful," Arthur grumbled when Merlin returned with his horse. The king shoved the dirty dishes at his servant, snatched the lead from Merlin's hand, and dragged the horse away. Snorting humorlessly, shaking his head, Merlin stomped towards a nearby stream.

Slowly, he began cleaning the plates, very much aware of the knights chatting among themselves, and he could almost enjoy the silence. That is until Gwaine and Percival began mock fighting. Swords clashed back and forth, both knights egging each other on, and otherwise being rowdy as always; a bit like children.

Merlin ignored them, continuing his task, unaware of just how close they were until he felt someone knock into his back. He fell forward, landing face first into the lake. Flailing, trying to get to the surface, very much aware of the dishes surrounding him, he felt someone grab the back of his tunic and pull him to his feet.

"Sorry mate," Gwaine apologized, a smile in his voice, as Percival set him on his feet. Sputtering, Merlin pushed sopping wet hair out of his eyes. He was very much aware of Arthur, Leon, and Elyan joining them, the king in the lead.

Arthur smirked, crossing his arms, raising his eyebrows. "When I said wash the dishes I didn't mean go in after them?" The knights chuckled at Arthur's joke, and Merlin felt something snap inside of him.

"You think this is funny?!" he snapped, his voice harsh, surprisingly the knights and Arthur. "You think I like being your personal lapdog when we go on these stupid hunting trips? I know I am your servant, I know I am paid to serve _you_ Arthur, but can't you do a damn thing for yourself?

"I mean, gods, today is my only day off! After the complete crap week I've had, I thought just maybe I'd get one day to relax, but NO you felt the need to drag me on another one of these mindless hunting excursions just so I can carry your things and compliment your kills and otherwise keep your prat ass company!

"And you two," he rounded on Gwaine and Percival, both edging away from him, "can't you go five minutes without reverting back to childlike behavior? I mean, you are grown men, KNIGHTS of Camelot, for Godsakes!

"And you two," he saved Leon and Elyan for last, both taken aback, "haven't really done anything wrong, but I am just really angry right now and need to yell at someone, so I apologize for screaming at you!

"Now, if you'll excuse me," Merlin finished, stooping down to collect the dishes he had dropped, "I am going to put these away." He then stormed off, the knights parting to let him through, and headed back up the hill, towards camp feeling embarrassed yet satisfied.

**Merlin**

The knights were unnaturally polite to Merlin for the rest of the day, but Arthur seemed to be giving him the worst cold shoulder ever that Merlin was actually glad to part with the king by the time they reached Camelot.

For the next few days afterward, Arthur would leave Merlin a list of things to do but wouldn't say anything to him, so that by the time Wednesday rolled around Merlin was beginning to miss the blond's voice. He even tried to start small conversations with Arthur, but he only received grunts in return.

Finally, Friday, for whatever reason, it seemed Gwen stepped in because as Merlin was scrubbing Arthur's floor he heard the blond in question grumbling over the sound of Gwen reprimanding him and when the door opened he noticed the queen dragging the king by his ear.

She hurtled Arthur forward, gestured to Merlin, and demanded, "Talk to him now."

"What?" Merlin looked between the two, both wearing stubborn looks on their faces, and wondered what had happened to get Gwen involved.

"Arthur Pendragon you talk to Merlin now or I will be sure that every maid knows to give you cold baths for the next month."

"You wouldn't," Arthur protested turning to face his wife. She merely put her hands on her hips and raised her eyebrows in a 'try me' type face. He sighed heavily, looking as if he'd rather be doing anything else (fighting a bear, learning to sew from Gwen, listening to Gaius talk about his bunions), and turned to Merlin slowly, practically spitting out, "I'm sorry for dragging you on another hunting trip."

For a second, Merlin actually pictured Arthur as a naughty child, the way he stood tensely, the way he said the words in a monotone, and definitely in the way he didn't really mean them. The young warlock almost teased Arthur about this, but thought better of it when Gwen sharply said, "And Merlin, is there anything you wish to say to Arthur?"

Merlin almost said 'no.' He may have regretted saying the words, but he still meant them. Arthur deserved to be berated once in a while, it kept him from getting too big of a head, but the way Gwen was staring at him made him feel six-years-old, and he heard himself say, "I'm sorry I yelled at you, Arthur."

"Now hug," Gwen demanded looking between the two men.

"Oh come on Guinevere," Arthur protested just as Merlin stammered, "I-I don't think that's a good idea."

"You two are best friends, you do everything together, and I think you two should hug." Again, Merlin felt like a child under Gwen's sharp gaze, so he sighed and pushed himself to his feet. He met Arthur's eyes, the blond rolled his eyes in a 'what can I do she's scary' type way, and it took all Merlin had not to smirk.

They stepped forward, embraced quickly, and let each other go just as quick, backing away from each other. Arthur ran his hand through his hair while Merlin became well acquainted with the floor. Gwen made a satisfied sound before leaving the room, closing the door behind her, and the two men stood there awkwardly.

It was quiet for a while, but finally Arthur murmured, "I am sorry for…"

"Don't worry about it," Merlin interrupted softly. "I was having a bad week; I took it out on you and the knights. It wasn't your fault."

"Damn right it wasn't," Arthur retorted quietly, ruffling his hair again. Merlin chuckled once, shaking his head. "But seriously…"

"Arthur, as much as I hate watching you kill animals for fun, I don't actually regret those trips. I get to spend time with my friends away from all the scrutiny that takes place here." He gestured around the room. "It'd just be nice to be treated like an equal sometimes, you know?"

"Yeah, I guess Gwaine can do the dishes once in a while."

"Oh, I'm sure he'd _love_ that."

The two men shared a quick smile, both looking away from each other. The silence that followed was less awkward, Arthur breaking it again. "You were a bit of an arse, though."

"And you were a bit of a dollophead," Merlin teased crossing his arms.

"Idiot."

"Prat."


	10. The Bully

**Okay this one goes out to Jules.a. She asked for a story involving someone from Merlin's past. I also think someone asked for a bullying storyline, but I can't remember who asked, so if that was your prompt here ya go. Also, I sorta tried again with the 'protecting Merlin from himself' thing. I hope this one is a bit better.**

**So, thanks for reading, reviewing, alerting, and favoriting last chapter. I seriously cannot thank you enough.**

**Leave me a comment if you can, I still don't own 'em (except for the 2 OCs), and I'll see you in the next chapter.**

**Bye!**

**P.S. If I haven't gotten to your prompt yet. Do Not Fret. I am slowly working through 'em. Be patient, I will get to it :)**

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Merlin spent a majority of his time in Ealdor being bullied by the older kids. He had been too small, too skinny, too _weird_ for their liking, and they had taken their displeasure of him _out_ on him. It was a huge reason for his displeasure with bullies, and his mouth got him into more trouble more often than not because he _just_ couldn't take the teasing lying down.

The worst of the bullies had been a field worker named Nathan. Nathan was vicious, poking fun of every child in the small village, but his favorite target was Merlin. He had choice words to say about Merlin's lack of a father, his lack of muscles, his gawky stature, his clumsiness, his stutter, his ears, and any other nitpicky thing he could come up with; he even had a nickname for Merlin: Malady Merlin or Malady for short.

The worst part, besides Will egging Nathan on every chance he got, was that Merlin could easily put a stop to the bullying, but he was forced to hide his magic for fear of being persecuted for being who he was. So, he sucked it up, ignored it as best as he could, and only got into major trouble when his mouth ran faster than his brain.

When he went away to Camelot, and actually made friends who cared about him (with the exception of Will and his mother he didn't have many friends in Ealdor), Merlin let the memory of Nathan fade to the back of his mind until he all but forgot the bully. That is until Nathan turned up in Camelot.

It started out as any other day. Merlin spent the morning getting berated by Arthur for waking him up late, managed to drop the remnants of Arthur's breakfast all over the kitchens floor, got screamed at by Cook for making a mess, and then spent the rest of the morning holding a shield so Arthur and the knights could take turns hitting him repeatedly.

By mid-afternoon, he was stiff, tired, and aching in places he _hated_ aching in, and all he wanted was to sit down for ten minutes, maybe take a nap, but Arthur needed him to sit through some stupid meeting or whatever, so he spent the majority of an hour leaning against a pillar, head resting against the stone, trying very hard _not_ to fall asleep.

When the meeting ended, and the council collected their papers, Arthur moved towards Merlin and softly asked, "So, what do you think?"

"What?" Merlin shook his head, brought back to reality by Arthur's voice, his daydreams of sleeping floating away. "What did you say?"

"Never mind," Arthur huffed, rolling his eyes. "I need you to polish my sword for tonight."

"What's tonight?" Merlin questioned around a yawn, following Arthur out of the great hall.

"Honestly _Mer_lin, do you not listen to me when I speak?" Arthur rolled his eyes again, shaking his head. With a sigh, he condescendingly responded, "A few of the kingdoms are sending representatives before we start talks on a new treaty."

"Ah." Merlin nodded recalling Arthur mentioning it a few times, but it had been when he had been extremely busy. Seriously, the blond prat should know better than to tell Merlin things when the young warlock had a list of stuff he needed to get done and _no_ _way_ to use his magic. "You could have probably sounded like less of an arse when you reminded me."

"I'm the king, Merlin, I can sound any way I want," Arthur retorted sounding like a petulant child, and Merlin snorted, shaking his head. "Shut it," the king grumbled punching Merlin in the arm. "Or you'll be spending the day in the stocks."

"No I won't," Merlin argued lightly, a smirk on his face. "You'd get bored without me." He then hurried off before Arthur could say anything else, chuckling when he heard the king mutter something about him being an idiot.

**Merlin**

Merlin had just finished with Arthur's laundry, a basket held tightly in his hand, when he ran into someone on his way out of the kitchens. He muttered an apology, slipping into his 'good servant' routine, but froze when he heard a familiar voice snarl, "Malady, is that you?"

Slowly Merlin dragged his eye upward, meeting a pair of familiar, dark green eyes and dark hair: Nathan the bully. "Hello Nathan," Merlin greeted with a forced smile. "What are you…?" he trailed off, taking in Nathan's attire, and he felt his stomach sink to somewhere below his knees. "You're a knight?"

"I am," Nathan responded with a cruel, dark smile on his face. "And I see you still don't matter. What are you? You're a…" he took in Merlin's appearance and the basket still clutched tightly in his hands, "…a servant? So, you've finally found a career that you excel at? Tell me, did your whore of a mother have to beg that crackpot old uncle of yours to get you a job?"

Had this been Ealdor, and despite his mother's insistence that bullies weren't worth it, Merlin would have thrown the basket down and tackled Nathan to the ground. It was one thing for the man to poke fun of Merlin, but to go after his family was stepping over a line Nathan had never crossed until he seemed to have a sword strapped to his side and a kingdom to back him up.

So, being the bigger person, Merlin took a deep breath and attempted to walk around Nathan. The knight moved with him, blocking his path, and crossed his arms. "Please, Merlin, you couldn't outrun me when we were kids what makes you think you'll succeed now?"

"Just let me go, Nathan," Merlin said softly, very much aware of how empty the hallway was. If he were careful, did one of his nonverbal spells, he could easily feign innocence if Nathan said he had been attacked. '_No, Arthur, I saw him trip. I swear.'_ Of course, that sounded like a lie even in his head, so he doubted it'd do…

Merlin jolted back a step, his back colliding with the kitchens door, his head hitting the wood with an audible _thud_ and making his ears ring. The basket fell from his hands, landing on the floor, scattering Arthur's clothes.

"I see you're still Malady Merlin," Nathan sneered smirking down at Merlin. "Do you still cry when someone tugs on those big ears of yours?"

"Walk away Nathan," Merlin whispered feeling his magic bubbling up inside of him. "Just walk away."

"Why?" Nathan pushed Merlin into the door again, the younger man's vision going spotty when his head connected with the door a second time. "Can't I catch up with an old friend?" When his head connected a third time, Merlin's vision went white and he forgot all about the spell that had been on the tip of his tongue.

He heard a distant chuckle as the door behind him flew open and a familiar voice snarled, "What are you imbeciles doing…? Cook trailed off when Merlin flailed backwards, straight into her, knocking both himself and her to the floor.

She screeched, pushing Merlin off her, and began yelling loudly at him, making his head ache. He tried to sit up, but moving sent a sharp pain through his head and left his stomach feeling queasy. Cook kept screaming, no doubt attracting everyone in the entire castle (okay, maybe not the entire castle, but a good chunk of it) and soon Merlin heard a familiar voice snap, "What the hell happened here?"

Cook's screeches died on her lips and she quietly said, "Your _servant,_" the way she said it made it sound like a dirty word, "knocked me to the floor, again." Merlin wanted to say that was _one_ time, and it had been _she_ who knocked him down, but his head was still pounding and the room had started to spin a little, plus the urge to vomit was becoming more and more apparent. It was best if he _just_ kept his mouth shut.

"Merlin," Arthur's voice was suddenly in his ear, a hand resting on the side of his neck. "Merlin, open your eyes."

He really didn't feel like it. In fact, going to sleep sounded like the best idea ever, and despite Arthur's demands to him to open his eyes, Merlin felt himself slip into a sea of darkness.

**Merlin**

"I want you to find out what happened," Arthur said to Leon and Percival. "I don't care what it takes, you get me answers." They nodded and walked off, both going two separate ways. He turned back to Elyan and Gwaine, both sitting at Gaius' table, the latter clenching his hands into tight fists.

"When I find out who did this…" Gwaine snarled, his voice trailing off into dark mutters. Arthur agreed with the knight, but he also knew he couldn't go and flog whoever hurt Merlin. This had to be handled delicately, they really needed the treaty signed, and murdering someone from another kingdom was just in bad taste. Unless they hid the body; he wondered if Gwaine knew how to hide bodies. He seemed like the type, and seriously…

_No, this had to be handled delicately_, he told himself. No body hiding was to be done at all, no matter if Gwaine knew how to hide a body, but that didn't stop Arthur from storing the idea away for later.

Merlin's door opened and Elyan and Gwaine stood, joining Arthur as they watched Gaius exit the room, closing the door behind him. He slowly walked down the stairs, meeting the worried gazes of the three men.

"He's been giving a concussion," Gaius stated wringing his hands, "so he'll need bed rest for the rest of the day."

"Does he know who did it to him?" Arthur asked curiously very much aware of Elyan and Gwaine straightening up at the question.

"If he does he's not saying," Gaius replied shaking his head.

"Do you think he'll tell me?"

"It's very doubtful, sire."

"I just…" Arthur trailed off when a light knock sounded at the door. Eyebrows furrowed, Gaius moved past the two knights and king, opening the door. "Yes," he answered and Arthur heard a small voice mumble something. "Really?" The voice said something else, and Gaius backed up to let a child inside.

"What did you see?" Gaius asked softly, leading the child over to his table. The boy's eyes were wide when they settled on Arthur, Gwaine, and Elyan, but he managed to whisper, "The knight did it."

"What?" Arthur moved forward, crouching next to the boy, and gently (or as gently as possible) repeated, "What did you see?" His voice must not have been gentle enough, the boy's eyes quickly filling with tears.

"Oh for Godsakes," Gwaine hissed knocking Arthur out of the way. He took the king's original spot and said, "Which knight?"

"He wasn't a very nice man," the boy murmured shaking his head. "He k-knocked me down when he l-left, after you showed up." His eyes settled on Arthur's face for a moment. "I don't like him, and he hurt Merlin."

"Do you know anything else?" Elyan questioned softly, hovering behind Gwaine and Arthur.

The boy nodded, swallowing heavily, and mumbled, "He c-called Merlin, Malady. And Merlin called him Nathan."

Arthur stood and stiffly said, "Find me this Nathan." Gwaine made to move towards the door, but the blond snagged his arm. "_Not _you." His blue eyes flickered to Elyan and the shorter knight nodded before leaving the room.

"What's your name?" Arthur asked glancing down at the boy.

"S-Seth, sir," the boy stammered, looking down at his feet.

"You did a very good thing today, Seth," Gaius commended the boy, resting a hand on his shoulder. Seth nodded, still not looking up.

"I-I like Merlin," Seth stated quietly, lightly kicking his feet. "He's nice. Why would a-anyone want to hurt him?" That was a very good question. One Arthur wanted to ask this _Nathan_ when he got a hold of him.

**Merlin**

How Arthur managed to keep the treaty and punish this _Nathan_ man, he did not know, but it happened and he had learned to NEVER look a gift horse in the mouth. After the last of the representatives were seen out of Camelot, and _Nathan_ was sent down to the dungeons to rot (after Gwaine and Percival got a hold of him) for as long as Arthur felt justified his actions, the king found himself outside Merlin's room.

He hesitated for a quarter of a minute before knocking lightly and entering without being invited. Arthur slowly moved across the room, sitting down on the edge of Merlin's bed. The younger man didn't react, but the blond knew he was awake.

"He's been taken care of," Arthur murmured resting his hands, palms down, on either side of him. "He was stripped of his knighthood and resides in our dungeons." Arthur 'neglected' to tell Merlin about the 'extra punishment' Gwaine and Percival doled out. In fact, they'd be lucky if the man survived the night. Arthur knew he should probably do something, but he just couldn't bring himself to give a damn.

"You shouldn't have done that," Merlin responded softly, keeping his back to Arthur. "He wasn't worth it. _I'm_ not worth it."

"Was that the first time? Because I already _told_ you to come to me if anything like that happened. You remember Baron Nicolas, right?" He felt Merlin stiffen at the name, and he regretted bringing the baron up. "Look, Merlin, I don't care what anyone says to you. You _do_ matter. No matter what some son-of-a-bitch bully says to you. You do matter." When Merlin neglected to answer, Arthur nodded and stood up. "Look, you don't have to tell me what happened, or why he did what he did, but if you want to," he gripped Merlin's ankle, "I'll be there.

"And remember," he released Merlin, moving towards the door, "you _do_ matter."


	11. The Bug

**This one goes out to Sahba (who wanted a feverish, delirious Merlin) and Daily-Chan (who wanted a story featuring Leon, Gwaine, and Lancelot). So, thanks a bunch for the ideas guys, and I sure hope you liked what I did.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, alerted, and favorited last chapter. I cannot thank you guys enough.**

**I am slowly getting through the prompts, I promise yours is coming, and keep on reading :)**

**Leave me a comment if you can, and remember if I owned Merlin there would have been a hell of a lot more Merlin whump.**

**Bye!**

* * *

"I'm actually surprised Arthur let you go," Gwaine commented offhandedly, maneuvering his horse around a downed tree.

"He doesn't _own _me," Merlin retorted sneezing. A chill ran through him, and he barely kept a shiver at bay. "I'm his servant _not_ his slave." He sneezed twice more, followed by a rattling, deep cough that left his chest aching.

"Are you okay?" Leon questioned worriedly, slowing his horse down so he could keep up with Merlin's mare's slower pace.

"Fine," Merlin replied coughing again, unable to stop the second shiver from wracking his body. "It's just a cold."

"Maybe I should have said 'I'm surprised Gaius let you out.'" Gwaine glanced back at Merlin, concern written all over his face. The young warlock merely waved his hand, indicating he was fine, but the act was pretty much useless when he sneezed three more times, rapid fire, leaving him feeling a little dizzy and his head pounding.

"We should stop," Leon suggested already bringing his steed to a stop, ignoring Merlin's weak protests. "We're nowhere near Camelot, we can't get Gaius here if you fall off your horse…"

"We're stopping," Gwaine finished bluntly, already dismounting his horse.

"Just until you look as if you aren't about to fall off your horse," Leon stated sympathetically, jumping down and leading his horse over to a patch of grass. Instead of following, Gwaine hovered near Merlin's horse, obviously waiting for the younger man to fall off or something.

"This is really unnecessary," he grumbled dismounting his horse. "I'm fine." The moment his feet touched ground, Merlin began to wobble and it was only Gwaine's quick reflexes that stopped him from toppling over.

"You were saying," the knight stated, deadpan, and helped Merlin over to the downed tree, slowly lowering him on it. "Stay here," Gwaine half-heartedly ordered and walked away, helping Leon tend to the horses.

Merlin tried to push himself to his feet, but another wave of dizziness rushed over him and he sank back down. He leaned forward, breathing through the dizzy spell, trying to ignore the way his head began pounding again.

He jumped when he felt a hand settle on his forehead, a familiar voice saying, "Maybe you should have stayed behind."

"What?" Merlin looked up, his eyes widening when he spotted Lancelot hovering over him. "L-Lancelot? How…?"

"I'm not really here, Merlin," Lancelot stated, his hand leaving Merlin's head so he could sit next to the younger man. "You have a fever."

"B-but I felt fine this morning," Merlin stammered around a cough. Actually, he was lying, he had felt like complete shit that morning, but he thought if he drained one of Gaius' potions for colds he'd be good to go, and he would be, once the potion kicked in.

"It's not a cold, Merlin," Lancelot commented softly, "and I think you should let Leon and Gwaine take care of you, just until you're strong enough to ride."

"…should get Gaius." A new hand landed on his forehead, causing Merlin to jump and Lancelot to vanish. Merlin lifted his head, very much aware of the continued pounding and dizziness, eyes settling on Leon and Gwaine hovering over him, much like Lancelot had been doing mere moments beforehand.

"We're not even close to Camelot," Leon reminded Gwaine, his voice soft, blue eyes filled with worry.

"Merlin," Gwaine started slowly, after a beat, probably thinking about what Leon had just said. "Did you pack any medicine? Anything to help us, you know, if one of us ended up sick?"

"M-my bag," Merlin croaked, his eyelids suddenly heavy. "C-check my bag." He felt a pair of hands catch him as he fell forward, a warm body against his shuddering, almost freezing one, and he heard a voice murmur, "Go check."

"You're warm," Merlin muttered burrowing his head into the side of someone's neck.

"So are you," Gwaine's voice retorted, trying and failing to make a joke. "Burning up actually."

"L-liar, I'm cold," Merlin whined, albeit very manly mind you, and tried to burrow deeper into Gwaine's chest. The knight was just so warm, and he knew he should probably get up, prove to Leon and Gwaine _(and_ Lancelot) that he was, in fact, fine, but he just couldn't find the strength.

"Which one?" Leon had returned, Merlin could hear him crouch down in front of Gwaine. There was the sound of glass bottles knocking into each other as the two, no doubt, began digging through Merlin's bag.

"Merlin, you need to tell them which one," Lancelot's voice suddenly said, right in Merlin's ear, causing the younger man to jump. His movement startled Gwaine, but the knight recovered quicker, figured it was another shiver, and gently ran his fingers through Merlin's hair, mumbling words of comfort.

"I-I don't…" Merlin mumbled but still managed to peel his eyes open, lifting his shaking hands to his bag. He pulled out a green liquid, followed by a blue, and whispered, "This two…" he coughed, cutting himself off, rubbing his aching chest. He tried to speak again, but it only led to more painful coughing, so Merlin stopped trying and just indicated with his hand.

"Okay," Leon replied nodding, understanding replacing the worry in his eyes. He fiddled with the green liquid's stopper, managing to get it open, but before he could hand over the potion, Merlin sneezed again. Something seemed to rip from him, and a sudden crack echoed through the forest, all three men freezing.

"What was that?" Leon and Gwaine said together.

"Merlin, what did you do?" Lancelot asked softly, worriedly. Merlin couldn't help feeling worried, too. Did he _just_ do accidental magic?

"I'll check it out," Leon volunteered, handing both vials over to Gwaine. "Keep an eye on him." The blond nodded at Merlin before he stood and followed the sound. Merlin tried to sit up, tried to follow the knight's path, but Gwaine's arm blocked his view as he tried to give the warlock the green potion.

"What does this do?" Gwaine asked curiously, getting Merlin's attention.

"Cough suppressor," Merlin replied still worried about Leon, but he still took the vial from Gwaine and, with still shaking hands, he managed to get most of the potion down his throat. Only to cough it back up a few moments later.

"It's okay," Gwaine murmured helping Merlin turn on his side, running a soothing, callused hand across the back of the warlock's neck. "Let it out."

"S-should have s-started with blue," Merlin stammered, still on his side, most of his lanky body huddled up in Gwaine's lap. "Anti-nausea medicine," he answered the unasked question. "S-should have started with the b-blue."

"Are you okay?" Gwaine and Lancelot asked together.

"I-I'm fine," Merlin answered softly, but still made no effort to sit up.

"Are you feeling nauseas?" Gwaine questioned softly.

"I-I wasn't," Merlin murmured as a few more shivers wracked his body. And really he hadn't been, until he drank the cough medication. "Ugh, no more." He shook his head at the proffered anti-nausea medication; fairly certain it'd only make him vomit again.

"Do you need anything else?" Gwaine asked worriedly. "Perhaps a drink, something to eat…?"

"J-just sleep." As Merlin's eyes slipped closed again, he softly said, "Wake me when Leon gets back."

**Merlin**

Merlin awoke some time later to hushed voices and fingers running through his hair. He decided to concentrate on the soothing fingers, trying to ignore how hot he felt or that he was shaking. He felt a cough building up in his chest, and he tried to suppress it, but to no avail. It left his chest hurting and his head pounding.

"It's okay," he heard a familiar voice say above him. "You're going to be fine." Merlin merely grunted in reply, coughing again. The two hushed voices stopped speaking, the fingers vanishing as someone dropped down next to Merlin.

Already missing the soothing touch, Merlin forced his eyes open, Gwaine hovering over him, concern written all over his face. He helped Merlin sit up, propping the younger man against his chest, offering him a sip of water from his bota bag. The warlock hadn't realized how thirsty he was until the refreshing liquid trickled down his throat.

"I still say we should head back to Camelot," Leon muttered from above Gwaine and Merlin.

"Weren't you the one who said we were too far away? Plus, you said it was a branch falling," Gwaine replied softly, his chest vibrating against Merlin's face as he spoke. "It's probably just a rotten branch."

"It didn't look rotten," Leon argued exasperated. "I think there's a…"

"Don't say it," Gwaine snapped. "I swear if you say it I will run you through with my sword. We're _not_ moving until Merlin is better do you understand me?"

"I don't want to believe it, either." Leon knelt next to Gwaine, his blue eyes pleading. "But we could be in danger, and I for one would rather move Merlin somewhere safe then to have us stay out in the open any longer."

"Leon's right," Lancelot said in Merlin's ear. "We both know that was you, but you really should be under Gaius' care."

"L-Leon's right," Merlin muttered trying and failing to sit up. "We should h-head back to Camelot…" A sneeze ripped from his body, and there was another crack, somewhere deep in the forest. Leon turned to Gwaine, his face clearly saying 'we're heading back.' With a sigh, the brunette knight reluctantly agreed.

Moving Merlin seemed to be easier said than done. The moment the younger man was standing, a wave of dizziness and weakness rolled through him, so severe that, had Gwaine _not_ been holding him up, he would have collapsed in a heap back on the ground.

Leon made quick work rolling up the bedding Merlin had lain on. He tied them and Merlin's horse to his, and then helped Gwaine get Merlin on the third horse. The brunette knight proceeded to get on, behind Merlin, and, making sure the warlock was secured, grabbed the reigns and the two knights began riding back towards Camelot.

"Why did we take this trip again?" Gwaine tried to joke, but once again failed. When no one answered him, he began chatting idly about nothing in particular, his dulcet tones sending Merlin back to sleep.

**Merlin**

When he woke up, his skin felt like it was on fire. For a moment, he actually thought Gwaine and Leon figured out he had broken the tree branches and Arthur had condemned him to death by burning at the stake. He tried to scream, it literally felt like flames were eating away his flesh, but he barely managed a croaked cry.

"It's alright," he heard a familiar voice say, soothing fingers running through his hair again. "You're alright. No one is hurting you." Whoever was talking to him continued to stroke his hair until he drifted off again.

He awoke a second time colder than before but this time to muffled voices. Someone arguing with someone else, another person trying to calm the louder of the two down, while a third voice softly hummed close to his head. He recognized the song, something Lancelot used to hum during hunting trips, and Merlin allowed the song to drag him back into darkness.

The third time, he actually felt relatively warm, but _not_ fire hot. His head felt heavier than his body, his skin felt grimy and gross, and he coughed violently, but he had a feeling the worst was actually over.

Forcing heavy eyelids open, his vision blurred for a second before slowly bringing his room into view. He heard soft breathing to his left, a snore to his right, and thought for sure he spotted Lancelot standing in the doorway, but he blinked and his old friend was gone.

"I see you're awake," a familiar voice said from the corner, and Merlin was glad he was able to recognize it this time.

"How long have you been standing there?" Merlin croaked watching as Arthur came into view. Merlin would have to be blind to _not_ notice the dark circles under his eyes or his messy hair and clothes, but the warlock chose to ignore that tidbit for the time being.

"Not long," the king replied with a shrug. Merlin gave him a skeptical look, one which Arthur returned with a small glare. He then sighed and said, "At least not as long as those two." He jerked his head to his right and then forward.

Slowly, so as not to bring back the dizziness or pounding, Merlin turned his head left then right, finding Leon and Gwaine dozing in chairs on either side of his bed. "How long have _they_ been here?" he asked curiously, letting his blue eyes flick back to Arthur.

"Since they brought you back," Arthur replied suddenly a little worried.

"What?"

"Nothing," he murmured after a beat, shaking his head. "It's just been a trying three days for everyone."

"Wait? Three days?" How in the world had Merlin missed three days? He wasn't sure how he felt about that, but he was fairly certain it wasn't a good feeling. How much accidental magic could he have done in those three days? And if he had done any why wasn't Arthur tossing him in the dungeons right now?

"What do you remember from those three days?" Arthur asked carefully, eyeing Merlin cautiously.

The younger man nervously swallowed-hard to do when his throat was so try-and whispered, "Why? What did I do?"

"Nothing," Arthur answered hurriedly, obviously trying to reassure his servant. "It's just…" he ran a hand through his hair, trying to pick his words carefully, but finally shook his head and said, "You _talk_ in your sleep."

"I… I what?"

"It was just mutters, nothing coherent." There was something Arthur wasn't telling him, but for the first time in his life Merlin just didn't want to know, so he let it go. Sensing the need for a change in subject, Arthur clapped his hands together and said, "Right, so I should let you rest, but I expect you to be ready to work Monday morning."

"That's four days, Arthur," Merlin stated confused, eyebrows furrowed. Arthur had _never_ given him that many days off.

"Consider it a gift," the king responded with a small nod and left the room, softly closing the door behind him. Merlin laid awake for several minutes afterward, wondering what in the hell he could have said or did (and he prayed it wasn't magic) to get Arthur to act like that, but eventually his exhaustion won out and his thinking was put on hold as his eyes drooped closed.

As he sunk back into sleep, he was fairly certain he heard Lancelot say, "I'm glad you're alright, Merlin."


	12. The Bug Pt 2

**I had this fleeting image of a bunch of you finding out where I live and showing up here, demanding a follow-up to chapter 11, so I decided I must write it. So, this one is for everyone who wanted to know: WHAT DID MERLIN SAY IN HIS SLEEP?**

**Now, I feel as if I set a bar with 11 that I just can't compete with in 12, so I apologize if it's not as good as the last chapter.**

**So, thanks for reading, I don't own 'em, and leave me a comment if you can.**

**Bye!**

* * *

Arthur had been visiting the lower town, picking up somethings for Guinevere, when he spotted Leon, Gwaine, and a clearly unconscious Merlin coming towards him. Stomach sinking, dropping the flowers he had been holding, Arthur raced towards the horses, shouting for people to get out-of-the-way.

Trying to keep up with the horses, he called, "What the hell happened? I leave him alone with you two for a couple of hours…"

"He didn't tell us he was sick," Leon retorted, immediately looking ashamed for talking to his king so sharply. "I'm sorry, sire, it's just…"

"Look, princess, either you meet us at Gaius' or you can get trampled," Gwaine snapped, cutting the older knight off, ignoring the aghast look Leon threw him. Arthur decided to excuse the knight's insubordination because he was worried, allowing the two knights to quicken their horses' paces.

Arthur followed as quickly as he could, sprinting faster than he thought possible, and by the time he caught up he was breathing heavily, holding a stitch in his side, watching as Leon and Gwaine carried Merlin up the stairs to Gaius' chambers.

He took the steps two at a time, bursting into the doorway just as Merlin let loose a half-choked scream. The younger man began struggling to break free from Leon and Gwaine, muttering under his breath. Arthur was across the room in a second, trying to get his servant's attention, calm him down, but he froze when he heard Merlin sob, "I-I'm sorry… Arthur please…"

Backing away a step, Arthur allowed Gaius to look Merlin over, eyeing his servant cautiously. Merlin continued to mutter to himself, his struggling weakening, until it finally ceased, a relived breath leaving his lips as he murmured, "Lancelot?"

"Did he just…?" Gwaine started and Arthur numbly nodded.

"Take him to his room," Gaius instructed Leon, and the blond knight nodded, half carrying, half dragging Merlin up the steps.

"What the hell was that?" Gwaine demanded the moment the door was shut.

"I don't know," Arthur replied softly, looking at the floor. He hadn't heard the name Lancelot spoken since Gwen's brief betrayal. In fact, Arthur liked very much if the incident was never bought up again. He didn't care if it was magic or her own freewill, he didn't want to constantly wonder if she was with him because she wanted to be or because she couldn't be with Lancelot.

"Do you think he actually saw Lancelot?" Gwaine questioned just as Gaius' door opened, both knight and king turning to see Guinevere standing in the doorway.

"Who saw Lancelot?" Gwen eyed the two knights cautiously, something flickering in her eyes; something Arthur couldn't pinpoint but didn't exactly like either.

"What are you doing here?" Arthur asked quickly, ignoring her question.

"A servant saw Gwaine and Leon carrying Merlin towards Gaius' chambers," she replied softly, her brown eyes settling on Arthur. "Is Merlin okay?"

"He's sick," Gwaine stated folding his arms across his chest. "He didn't tell us, and he's running a pretty high fever."

"So, that could explain why he saw Lancelot," Gwen commented quietly, the same emotion flickering in her eyes again.

"Hallucination," Gaius supplied coming down the stairs. He had shut Merlin's door, wringing his hands. "I left Sir Leon inside; he's keeping an eye on Merlin for me."

"Okay." Arthur took a seat, resting his hands on the table.

"Oh, before I forget," Gwaine said quickly, sitting next to Arthur. "We think there may be a sorcerer roaming around in the woods. Leon can probably tell you more."

Arthur noticed Gaius stiffen at this news, but the older man otherwise didn't say another word. The king nodded once, sucking in a deep breath. "I can probably send a few knights out to investigate."

"It won't be necessary," Gwaine informed Arthur, looking down at the table. "Whoever it was must be long gone by now."

"It's best to be on the…"

"Gaius," Leon called and the elderly man hurried towards Merlin's room. Arthur jumped up, Gwaine following, and the two followed closely behind, Gwen right on Arthur's heels.

"I think his fever's gotten worse," Leon said worriedly, hovering over Merlin's bed. The man in question thrashed back and forth, struggling against an invisible enemy, muttering under his breath, "Arthur… Arthur please… I don't…" his words trailed off into whimpers.

"Why does he keep begging you to _not_ do something?" Gwaine glared at Arthur. "Did you do something before he left?"

"What?" Arthur turned, eyes narrowed, fists clenching at his side. "And what, do you suppose I did?"

"I don't…"

"Enough," Gaius called over the arguing men. He gestured towards the exit, eyes trained on Gwen and Leon. "Will you two please get water? We need to cool him down." They nodded, rushing out of the room. Gaius waited until they were gone before turning his attention to Gwaine and Arthur. "As for you two, neither of you are acting your age, and it stops now do you…?" Merlin sneezed, cutting Gaius off, and the threesome heard a bottle explode from the front room.

"What was that?" Arthur asked as he and Gwaine rushed out of Merlin's room. Gaius quickly followed them; the three men looked around, eyes settling on a green, goopy looking potion slowly drip down the wall near their heads. "How did _that_ happen?"

"How should I know," Gaius replied throwing his hands in the air. "I have been experimenting with a few new potions, I haven't a clue what that one does, but I'd advise you not to touch it." The two men edged away from the goopy mess, both heading back into Merlin's room.

"Right, I need help undressing him," Gaius informed them from the doorway, clapping his hands together. Arthur sighed softly, unable to stop himself from thinking: _The things I do for you, __Mer__lin._

They stepped forward, noting that Merlin's eyes were half-opened, but before Arthur could touch Merlin, the younger man let loose a hoarse yell and scooted away, practically falling off his bed. Hands raised, Arthur backed away, trying hard to ignore the angered look Gwaine threw him.

"I _did not_ do anything to him," Arthur said sharply, watching as Gwaine and Gaius helped Merlin back on his bed.

"Yeah, whatever," Gwaine grumbled.

"Just go sit outside and wait for Gwen and Leon," Gaius advised Arthur with a sympathetic look on his face. Arthur hesitated for a moment, but finally nodded and walked out of the room, wondering what had happened to make Merlin react that way.

**Merlin**

Arthur could practically feel the tension in the room as they waited for Gaius to return. Gwaine was glaring at him, Leon stood in the corner wringing his hands, and Gwen hovered near Arthur's shoulder, her bottom lip between her teeth. Percival and Elyan wanted to her here, but Arthur had sent them out to look for the alleged sorcerer.

"I just would like to know what you did," Gwaine started softly, his voice deadly calm, fingers lightly brushing against his sword.

"I didn't do a damn thing to him," Arthur hissed, clenching his hands into fists. "Stop accusing me of hurting him."

"It's probably just the fever, Gwaine," Gwen said softly, her hand resting on Arthur's shoulder. "He could be mistaking Arthur for someone else."

"Possibly, if he hadn't been muttering 'No Arthur, please don't' over and over again," Gwaine retorted crossing his arms.

"I'm more worried about him seeing Lancelot," Gwen commented absentmindedly.

"Why?" Arthur turned to her, trying very hard to keep his voice casual, and by her look he failed miserably.

"It just makes me wonder who else Merlin is seeing," Gwen replied a little defensively, her hands immediately leaving Arthur's shoulder. "I'm going to go help Gaius," she stated and walked away, closing the door to Merlin's room behind her.

"Did you hit him?" Gwaine asked suddenly and Arthur slammed his hands down on the table.

"I did not do a single thing to him," the king snapped shoving himself to his feet. "It was the bleeding fever and you know it, so stop accusing me of…"

"Arthur," Leon said softly, cutting the king off. "Perhaps you should get some air."

"I am fine, Sir Leon," Arthur said sharply, his blue eyes still trained on Gwaine.

"I'm serious, Arthur," Leon stated moving across the room slowly, resting his hand on Arthur's wrist. As he lowered the king's arm, Arthur realized, with wide eyes, that he had grabbed a copper pot and had it raised to strike Gwaine

In surprise, he dropped it, taking a step back. "I-I'm sorry," he apologized moving backwards towards the door. "I-I should go get some air."

"Yes," Leon agreed nodding. "We'll come get you if anything changes."

"Right."

Once outside, Arthur leaned against the door and slid to the floor. He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his thighs, burying his face in his hands. He knew he didn't do anything to Merlin, hell he barely saw Merlin this morning. How dare Gwaine insinuate that he could hurt Merlin. Add that to the fact that his wife seemed a little more obsessed with the fake Lancelot than she should, and Arthur just felt like punching a wall or something.

He sighed deeply, running both his hands through his hair. He couldn't concentrate on this stuff now. His main focus should be Merlin and his health. He'd deal with the emotional fallout on a later date. He stood, deciding to take a walk around the castle, and moved away from the door.


	13. The Bug Pt 3

**I wrote this because I love you guys, and my mother convinced me to, so here ya go.**

**Thanks to those who reviewed, alerted, and favorited last chapter. You guys are amazing.**

**Thanks for reading, drop me a comment if you can, and see ya in the next chapter (which will feature a new prompt).**

**See ya!**

* * *

Monday morning found Merlin standing outside, breathing in his first gulps of fresh air since he got sick Thursday. He still had a bit of a cough, and when he took in too much air, spasms wracked his body as he roughly coughed, resting his hand against the side of the castle for support.

"You alright?" a familiar voice asked, a hand settling on his shoulder.

"I'm fine," Merlin replied, turning to face Gwaine, a wide grin on his face. "I was about to go wake on Arthur, but I wanted to get outside for a few moments."

Gwaine's face darkened slightly at the mention of Arthur, but when Merlin opened his mouth to ask about it, a pair of arms engulfed him, pulling him into a bear hug, and Percival said, "You end up under Gaius' care more than the knights."

"I need air, Percival," Merlin gasped, feeling as if his ribs were about to break, and with a sheepish grin Percival lowered him to the ground. "Sorry, but when Leon told me what happened…"

"He made it sound like you were dying," Elyan finished coming up behind the giant knight. "But we're glad you didn't." The shorter knight clamped him on the back, a broad grin on his face.

"Where is Leon? I wanted to thank him for, you know, helping me out last week." Merlin ran a hand through his hair, trying to seem less awkward than he felt, looking around for the curly-haired knight.

"He patrolling, but he's shift's almost over. I can take you to him," Gwaine offered nodding his head towards the gate.

"Maybe later," Merlin replied with a smile, "after I wake Arthur." Gwaine's face darkened again, but it cleared a few seconds later and he nodded, gesturing for Merlin to run along.

"Maybe later," he coincided with a forced smile.

"Yeah." Giving the knight a half worried, half confused look, Merlin bid the others good-bye and headed back into the castle, taking the stairs two at a time. When he reached the top, he was a little out of breath, but it just felt so good to actually be out of bed that he just didn't care.

He had just reached Arthur's room, hand poised to open the door, when he heard muffled voices coming from inside. It sounded as if Gwen and Arthur were arguing, but Merlin couldn't possibly think of any reason why they would be.

"I'm not having this discussion with you, again, Arthur," Gwen snapped, her footsteps approaching the door. Merlin stepped away from the door, resting his against the wall, and watched as Gwen yanked the door open and stormed out of the room.

Merlin waited until she had disappeared around the corner before pushing away from the wall and walking into the room. Arthur stood by the window, glaring down at the courtyard, arms folded tightly against his chest.

"I leave for four days…" Merlin started, trying to make a joke, but it faltered when Arthur neglected to acknowledge him. "Arthur, what's going on?" he asked worriedly, slowly crossing the room.

"Merlin, I am going to ask you a question, and I want an honest answer," Arthur stated softly, stiffly, his back still to his servant.

"Okay."

"Do you honestly not remember those three days?"

Arthur had asked Merlin a similar question Thursday, when he woke up, and the younger man hadn't at the time. But after sitting in bed for four days, getting berated by Gaius every time he tried to get up, Merlin had begun remembering flashes; just little things.

"A bit," he admitted carefully. It still wasn't enough to tell him if he did any accidental magic, but if he did, why was he still allowed outside? He'd have figured Arthur would have had him locked up by now. "Not much though."

He watched as Arthur slowly turned, and it took all Merlin had not to run. He had a fleeting image of Arthur calling for the guards, of Gwaine and Leon hauling off to the dungeons, unsure why they were doing it but obeying their king like they had sworn to do, and Merlin would be begging, pleading Arthur to hear him out, let him explain. He just needed to explain.

His eyes stung, and he blinked rapidly as his vision blurred. He shook his head, trying to clear it, very much aware of the concern and uncertainty flickering across Arthur's face. Merlin took a deep breath, slowly let it out, and softly asked, "What happened?"

Arthur was quiet for a very long time, but finally he said, "I don't _hurt_ you, do I?"

"What?" Yes, Arthur had been a bit physical a few times, but it hardly ever hurt. Each head slap, each shoulder punch, were mostly wake up calls and Arthur trying to be sympathetic and failing miserably. In fact, compared to some servant/master relationships, Merlin got off relatively light with some of the crap he pulled over the years. "Arthur, where is this coming from?"

"You'd tell me if I ever did something to cause you pain, right? Because you call me out on everything else I do wrong, this would just be another thing, right? I mean, you got mad at me when I punched you that one time, called me thick, so you'd be vocal about other instances, right?"

Arthur had begun pacing during his speech, and Merlin crossed the room in a second, blocking the king mid-step, placing his hands on his shoulders. "What happened?" he repeated meeting the older man's eyes.

"You kept begging me _not_ to do something," Arthur replied quickly, "almost as if I was going to harm you o-or kill you."

"Arthur, I…" Merlin trailed off, taking a deep breath. He vaguely remembered the feel of too hot skin, having convinced himself that Arthur _must_ know his secret and that he had decided to burn him at the stake. "Arthur, I trust you with my life. And believe me when I say, despite how big of a prat you can be, you've never actually done anything to cause me prolonged pain."

Arthur looked as if he wanted to argue, but he must have seen something in Merlin's eyes because he nodded, resting a hand on the younger man's shoulder and squeezing.

"That's true," the king tried to joke, a ghost of a smile crossing his lips, "and you've done some dunderheaded things."

"I have," Merlin agreed with a nod, a smirk on his face, "and mostly to help _your_ royal backside."

Arthur looked as if he were feeling relatively better, but something was still bothering him, so Merlin threw caution to the wind and asked, "What's going on with Gwen and you?" Something dark crossed Arthur's face and he seemed to burrow into himself. "What?"

"Did you see Lancelot?" the king blurted out, and Merlin let his hands drop from Arthur's shoulders. "You did, didn't you?"

"He wasn't real," Merlin replied firmly.

"But you still saw him."

"But he wasn't real."

"Merlin…"

"Arthur…"

The two stared at each other for a very long, drawn out moment, but finally Arthur cracked and softly said, "I think Guinevere still loves him."

Merlin had done plenty of stupid things in his life-some to save someone he cared for, others because Will or Gwaine were a bad influence, and once because Gwen dared him and for some reason he just couldn't say no-but this probably was one of the stupidest. He smacked Arthur in the back of the head.

The look on Arthur' face would have been comical, had anyone else hit him, but when Merlin realized what he did, he retreated backwards, waiting on the knights to be called. Surely that was enough to get him thrown in the dungeons. He may have managed to get away with any accidental magic-he most likely had Gaius to think for that-but this was something not even Gaius could help him with.

"Arthur, I am so…" Merlin trailed off when Arthur chuckled softly, rubbing the back of his head. Eyeing the king cautiously, Merlin said, "What…?"

"Thank you," Arthur responded with a smile, taking a step towards Merlin. The younger man jerked back a step, thinking Arthur was about to actually cause him prolonged pain, but instead he clapped the servant on the back. "I needed that."

He then left the room, calling over his shoulder, "I expect this place clean when I return.

"W-where are you going?" Merlin stammered still standing stock still.

"To apologize to Guinevere and Gwaine, and then order Gwaine to reorganize the armory. I do think he needs a lesson in disrespecting his king." As the door shut behind Arthur, Merlin weakly sank to the floor, still trying to process what happened and thanking the gods for his sudden stroke of luck.


	14. The Child

**Hey, so this one is for Krissystvs and Musiclovesbest. One wanted a de-aged Merlin while the other wanted an emotionally distraught Merlin. Thanks ever so much for the ideas guys, and I hope you enjoy this.**

**Oh, and for the person who asked me if Lancelot was dead the last few chapters 'Yes, he was.' Oh, and I'd make these chapters longer, but I am trying not to turn them into long, drawn out, needs more than one chapter to work out the plot, fics. I kinda like the idea of just drabbles, but I can TRY to make the chapters longer.**

**So, thanks for reviewing, alerting, and favoriting last chapter. I don't own 'em. And drop me a comment if you can.**

**Thanks for reading**

* * *

"What do we do with him?" Arthur asked curiously as Gwaine poked Merlin.

"Well, for starters, you can start by _not_ poking me," Merlin snapped in a small, angry, almost squeaky voice, glaring at Gwaine. The knight gave him a sheepish smile, backing away from him.

"Gaius, please tell me this wears off," Arthur begged, his blue eyes flicking to the older man.

"According to my reading, it'll last a week," Gaius replied letting his eyes scan the book sitting in front of him.

"A week?" Arthur's blue eyes snapped back to Merlin, who was kicking his bare legs back and forth, trying and failing to keep his shirt sleeves from falling over his hands. "And what do we do with him until then?"

"We keep him out of trouble," Gaius murmured rubbing his eyes with his hand.

"Easier said than done," Arthur muttered, crossing his arms.

Merlin shouted, "Hey," before trying to aim a kick at him, his short legs not quite reaching the king.

**Merlin**

So, Merlin was four again. Things could be worse. At least he had his memories, and Gwen was able to find him some smaller clothes to wear in the market. It did irritate him that everyone was treating him like he was breakable, making him sit around Gaius' chambers, bored out of his mind. He wanted to get out; he didn't see why some stupid curse should keep him from doing his usual duties. It was completely asinine.

Right now, he sat on his bed, flipping through his spell book, trying to find a better way to turn himself back into an adult. The problem, he was having a little trouble reading some of the words and getting absolutely nowhere with his research.

With a heavy sigh, he slammed the book shut and tossed it to the side. He fell onto his back, glaring at the ceiling. He needed to get out, so full of pent-up energy that he was willing to do anything, even if it was simply running around in circles in the yard; anything to get him out of his chambers.

He rolled off his bed, moving towards the door. He opened it, slowly heading down the stairs, stopping at the bottom. He stared at Gaius, standing at his cauldron and making a potion, and softly asked, "Can I please go outside?"

"Merlin," Gaius stated, starting slightly, holding his heart, "I didn't hear you. What did you say?"

"I asked if I could go outside. Please, Gaius, just for a few minutes. I am so bored." It was true, he never actually thought he'd miss cleaning Arthur's chambers. Hell, he was also willing to do the prat's laundry, polish his armor, muck out the stables…

Okay, maybe not the last one, but the others were a definite maybe. He needed to get outside otherwise he'd just die. Probably not actually die, but it felt like he was going to die of boredom if he didn't go outside.

"Merlin, I don't think you should be outside without supervision," Gaius replied softly, calmly, measuring out a vial full of the yellow potion.

"Gaius, I'm an adult," Merlin stated trying and failing to keep a whine out of his voice, contradicting his last statement. At least he kept himself from stomping his foot. "Please."

"Would you like to make deliveries with me?" Gaius asked after a beat, packing the yellow potion into his bag.

"Really?" Merlin perked up at the idea, already rushing towards the door. "Can I hand out the potions?" he asked excitedly, pulling the door open.

"We'll see," Gaius responded fondly, shutting the door behind them.

**Merlin**

"I'm not helping you get barmaids, Gwaine," Merlin grumbled crossing his arms, looking defiantly up at the knight.

"Come on, Merlin. We never get to spend time together, and I _know_ you want to get out of Gaius' chambers for a few hours." That stopped Merlin's protests in their tracks. Gaius had said that if an adult ('_an actual adult, Merlin.'_) were to escort him outside, he was allowed to leave their chambers. And he hadn't been outside in almost three hours. A second wave of energy had hit him and he needed to be able to run.

"Can't we just walk?" he asked curiously, but by the grin on Gwaine's face, the knight knew Merlin was about to agree. "Fine," the younger man said with a sigh, hanging his head. "But I'm not telling them I'm your son."

They walked out of Gaius chambers, Merlin practically running down the stairs, barely avoiding maids and servants as he headed towards the doors. He waited impatiently for Gwaine, unable to push the front doors open, tapping his foot against the stone floor.

"What are _you_ doing wandering by yourself?" a familiar voice asked and Merlin looked up to see Arthur walking towards him.

"First off, I'm not by myself," Merlin replied shortly, crossing his arms. "And second, even if I was, I am actually almost twenty-five, so I am _technically_ an adult and can be outside on my own."

"You're _not_ an adult," Arthur pointed out with narrowed eyes.

"In looks, yes, but in age…"

"No, I mean even when you are your age, you are hardly an adult." Arthur smirked at that, and Merlin knew he was doing his normal amount of teasing, and it would hardly bother him if he were older, but his four-year-old mind identified it with just plain being mean and he felt anger bubble up in his stomach.

He wanted to tell Arthur to 'shut it.' Hell, he wanted to tell Arthur that he hardly qualified as an adult either on the best of days, but neither phrases came out of his mouth. Merlin merely drew his foot back, kicked Arthur in the shin, hard, and ran off, listening to the king howl in pain.

**Merlin**

The castle went on lockdown, Arthur sending the knights out to look for Merlin. Gwen told him she was sure he hadn't gone far, he was a little boy after all, but he merely brushed her comfort off and continued to look for his servant.

Gwen headed to the kitchens, grabbing a few biscuits from a cooling rack, and began walking down to the library. She knew Merlin better than anyone, sometimes even better than Gwaine and Arthur, and she had a sneaking suspicion she'd find him among the dusty volumes. She couldn't exactly fault Geoffrey for missing him either, not when Merlin was hardly tall enough to reach most peoples' knees.

She walked past Geoffrey, who gave her a questioning look, heading towards the back of the library. Sure enough, she found Merlin hiding under an old table, knees drawn to his chest, his face hidden in his thighs.

"There you are," Gwen said softly, not caring about her dress as she crawled under the table. She made herself comfortable next to Merlin, bending her head a little to avoid hitting it. "We've looked everywhere for you." Merlin's only response was a little sniff. "Hey," Gwen said softly, resting a hand on his back, "what's wrong?"

"Arthur's going to put me in the dungeons," Merlin muttered without picking his head up, his voice muffled and hardly audible.

"Why do you say that?" Gwen asked curiously, running her hands down his spine. "Did he say that?" Merlin shook his head, sniffing again. "Then how do you know?"

"I k-kicked him," Merlin replied softly. "I don't even know what came over me. One moment he's being _Arthur_ and the next…"

"I'm sure he'll understand, Merlin," Gwen said quietly. "He's well aware of your age, and sometimes kids react without thinking."

"But I'm not a kid," Merlin exclaimed looking up, his red-rimmed blue eyes settling on Gwen. "I'm an adult, Gwen. I should have known better."

"Merlin," Gwen waited until he looked at her again before continuing, "right now, as much as you insist you are, you're not an adult. And I know it must be frustrating, but it's only for a few more days. Besides, I'm sure all you need to do is apologize for kicking him; he'll get over it.

"As for Arthur throwing you in the dungeons…" Gwen ignored Merlin's surprised protests as she bundled the boy into her arms, placing him in her lap. "Well, he's going to have to pry you out of my arms."

"Gwen, I'm…" Merlin trailed off, resting his head against her shoulder. "Thank you, Gwen."

"It's not a problem, Merlin." She ran a hand through his hair, offering him one of the biscuits she still held in her other hand. "We'll go apologize in a few moments, okay?"

"Okay," he agreed softly, clutching the cookie to his chest, his blue eyes slipping closed. "In a few minutes." He was asleep thirty seconds later.

**Merlin**

"Don't," Merlin warned slowly backing away from Percival. The bigger man continued to stalk towards him, a devilish grin on his face. "I mean it, Percival." Merlin backed up another step, his back hitting a wall. "I-I'm not a toy."

Percival towered over him, scooping the tiny wizard up, and tossing him over his shoulder. Merlin yelped, lightly kicking the knight's back. "Put me down," he demanded, but Percival ignored him, turning in a full circle.

Merlin couldn't help laughing, his stomach swooping in both fear and joy. Percival spun in a second circle, this time a bit faster, and Merlin stopped kicking, wanting the knight to do it again. He was spun one last time before Percival grabbed his legs, dangling the tiny wizard upside down.

"This isn't very safe," Merlin stated, unable to keep his giggles at bay. Percival grinned, lightly swinging Merlin back and forth before flipping him right side up and placing the small wizard on his shoulders, so both his tiny legs dangled on either side of the knight's head.

"Are you hungry?" Percival asked curiously, already starting back towards the castle.

"Yes," Merlin replied enjoying the view. He literally felt like he could conquer the world, smiling at everyone they passed, waving at the few he knew, and otherwise enjoying the ride while he could.

"He _has_ legs," Arthur pointed out when the two reached the castle.

"Shut it," Percival and Merlin said together, the latter giggling. His giggles turned into protests when Percival removed Merlin from his shoulders. He then handed the tiny wizard off to Arthur, whose protests mingled with Merlin's.

"Gwen has a snack waiting for him," Percival informed the king. He ruffled Merlin's hair, promised to seek him out after he ate, and then walked away. Merlin already missed the big guy, a part of him wanting to chase after him, see where he was going, ask if he could tag along.

Arthur deposited him on the ground, heading towards the doors. "Keep up," he said over his shoulder, heading inside.

"Arthur wait," Merlin whined running after him. His legs were just not long enough to keep up with the king's long strides and soon he lost him. A sudden wave of fear rolled through him, but Merlin pushed it down, figuring Arthur was just heading back to his chambers. He knew where the king's chambers were, cleaned it on a daily basis, he'd be fine.

Except there were a lot of people swarming around him, too many people. They could squish him. He could be squished and die and no one would know what happened to him. He wanted Percival back. Percival would have protected him; Percival wouldn't let bad things happen to him.

Merlin started crying, backing into the wall, sliding to the floor. He wanted to go back to Gaius' chambers. It was quiet there, less people, familiar. He didn't want to end up squished.

"Merlin," a worried voice said, standing directly above him, and he felt arms wrap around him as he left the floor. "Hey, it's okay." He felt a hand run down his back, another cradle his head, and a familiar voice continued to murmur words of comfort to him. It wasn't Gaius or Percival, but Merlin knew this man and felt himself relax, burying his face into a freshly laundered tunic.

"Come on, let's get you back to Gaius," Leon said softly, carrying Merlin through the crowd. "I'm sure he's worried about you."

"G-Gaius isn't h-here," Merlin stammered clutching tightly to Leon's shirt. "H-he went t-to collect herbs."

"Then who's keeping an eye on you?" Leon asked curiously, stopping short.

"A-Arthur, but… but I can't…"

"Merlin," he heard Arthur call and Merlin picked his head up, watching as the king rushed towards Leon, a worried expression on his face. "I didn't even notice…" he trailed off, clearing his throat, a mask of stoicism settling over his face when he spotted Leon. "I shall take him from here, Leon."

An amused look on his face, Leon handed Merlin over to Arthur. He then said, "Keep a better eye on him, sire," before walking away.

"You had Guinevere so worried," Arthur scolded Merlin as he carried him back to his chambers.

"Admit it, you were worried, too," Merlin murmured, sniffing, a smile on his face.

"Don't be ridiculous, Merlin," Arthur lied with a scoff. "I knew you'd find me."

"It's okay, Arthur," Merlin whispered, a sudden need to tell the truth enveloping him, "I was scared, too."

"Don't be such a _girl_, Merlin."

**Merlin**

"…eight, nine, ten," Merlin counted before backing away from the tree. "Ready or not, here I come!" he called and started searching the immediate area. "Elyan!" he called peeking around a tree. "Elyan, where are you?" he peeked around another tree, poking his head into a bush, screaming in freight when someone grabbed him from behind.

"Gotcha," Elyan stated laughing, burying his hand into Merlin's side, emitting a squeal of laughter from the tiny wizard.

"Don't," Merlin complained, squirming, breathless. "That's not funny."

"I'm sorry," Elyan apologized, placing Merlin back on the ground. "I'm just having some fun with you. You'll be… bigger tomorrow, and I didn't get to spend enough time with mini you."

"I know," Merlin replied latching onto Elyan's arm, swinging off it. "I just don't like being scared."

"Yeah, I can understand that," Elyan replied nodding. A grin suddenly appeared on his face and he shouted, "I'll race you back to Camelot!"

"You're on," Merlin exclaimed letting the knight go and running ahead of him.

Yes, he may have been four for a week, but it could have been a lot worse. He could have been four for the rest of his life. Tomorrow he'd return to being an adult, have to go back to work, but maybe just for today, he'd enjoy being a child again. Plus, Gwaine did promise to help him prank Arthur later. He just had to think of a way to blame the entire thing on the knight. Perhaps he'd ask Percival when he and Elyan returned to the castle.


	15. The Attacker

**Okay, this one is very short and NOT exactly a prompt. It started out as one, but then I started really digging the idea of Merlin taking care of himself. I know, not exactly part of the theme of the other stories, but I couldn't help it.**

**So, thank you, thank you, thank you for all your awesome reviews, alerts, and favorites for this story (This one has the highest number of favorites and alerts out of all my other stories) and I really hope to catch you all in the next chapter.**

**Thanks for reading, remember I don't own anyone, and leave me a comment if you can.**

**See ya!**

* * *

Merlin clutched tightly to his satchel, peeking into a bush, looking for the last herb on Gaius' long list. This was not how he had planned to spend his day off, but if it kept him from cleaning Gaius' leech tank again then Merlin wasn't about to complain.

He finally found the flower, dark red with splashes of yellow, his hand wrapping around the stem when a bolt landed inches from his hand. Merlin reeled back, landing heavily on the ground, the air knocked from his lungs. Another bolt implanted itself near his leg and-with a shout-he scrambled to his feet and ran in the opposite direction of the shooter.

For a second, he actually considered using magic, but he didn't _know_ where the shooter hid nor did he want to risk exposure if someone from Camelot happened to be watching him. So, he kept his magic to himself, zigzagging through the woods, trying to avoid the bolts firing at him, very much aware of his body's need for oxygen becoming more and more apparent the further he ran.

He made a quick left, his shoulder slamming into a tree. His satchel flew from his grasp, disappearing into a clump of bushes, but Merlin didn't bother going after it. He'd get it later, if he managed to survive that long.

Up ahead, he noticed a cluster of trees, making the forest nearly dark. It was his best chance to get away with his life, using magic where he couldn't be seen, and he was going to take it. He sped up, boots slamming against the ground, barely hitting the clump of trees when he felt a bolt impact into his leg.

Merlin went down _hard_, landing on his shoulder, sending a sickening amount of pain through his body. He lay there, breathing heavily, clutching his leg. Adrenaline still flowed through him, numbing the brunt of his pain, and he dreaded the moment it was going to wear off, but he'd take the pain if it meant he was going to survive.

He heard footsteps crashing towards him, and Merlin did the only thing he could think of. He turned onto his back, ignoring the pain in his shoulder and leg, and shot a jolt of raw, unadulterated magic at his attacker. He heard a shout, followed by a crunch, and a thud, the forest going absolutely silent.

Painfully, Merlin staggered to his feet, heading towards whoever he attacked. He limped heavily, using the trees for support, stopping next to an unfamiliar figure. Blood leaked from their mouth, their eyes half-open, breathing ragged and too fast. Merlin felt a pang of guilt for hurting this person, but his shoulder throbbed and he felt the guilt ebb away. This person, whoever they were, had attacked him. Why should he feel guilty for defending himself?

He turned to leave, wincing when the movement pulled on his shoulder. He needed to let Arthur know about his attacker; Gaius also needed to look at his leg and shoulder. Merlin stopped, looking down at the bolt still sticking out of his leg. With shaking fingers, he wrapped the hand from his uninjured arm around the metal arrow, yanking hard, barely keeping a scream of pain at bay as he slowly slid it from his flesh.

When it was free, he tossed it to the side, using shaking fingers to untie his neckerchief, ignoring the blinding pain radiating from his shoulder. He took a few moments to wrap the cloth around his leg before continuing to limp towards Camelot, snatching his bag on the way.


	16. The Attacker Pt 2

**Okay, so here's the conclusion. It's short, sorry, but I like the ending so, yeah. This is for those who wanted a second part, so I hope you enjoy it.**

**Thanks for the reviews, alerts, and favorites last chapter. You guys are awesome.**

**Thanks for reading, drop me a comment if you can, and I do not own the recognizable characters.**

**See ya!**

* * *

"I had this dream last night," Gwaine started receiving groans from Elyan and Leon in response. "What?"

"Face it, mate, your dreams aren't exactly _normal_," Elyan replied with an easy grin. Leon nodded in agreement.

"So, you don't want to hear about it?"

"Well…" Leon trailed off with a 'not really' shrug.

"I'm going to tell you anyway," Gwaine retorted ignoring the exasperated looks on his friends' faces. "So, we were out hunting and…" he stopped when he spotted a figure staggering towards them, eyes narrowing cautiously, hand reaching for his sword.

"What is it?" Elyan questioned as he and Leon straightened up. Gwaine nodded towards the figure, and his fellow knights follow his gesture, their hands darting to their swords. Gwaine squinted at the figure, trying to figure out if it was friend or foe, his eyes widening when he realized who it was, his stomach jolting when the figure collapsed to the ground.

"That's Merlin," he called over his shoulder, already running towards his friend. Leon and Elyan were right behind him, the three knights skidding to a halt next to the unconscious man.

"What happened?" Elyan asked worriedly.

"I don't know," Gwaine replied as he and Leon carefully lifted Merlin off the ground. Blood stained his breeches, his signature handkerchief tied tightly around the wound, and he seemed to whimper softly when Leon barely touched his shoulder.

"We need to get him back to Gaius," the blond knight said softly, and Gwaine and Elyan nodded in agreement.

"I'll go," Gwaine offered hefting the younger man up, into his arms, reveling in how heavy the lanky man actually was. "You two go find out who did this, and I'll let Arthur know before I join you." The two knights nodded again and Gwaine hurried back towards the castle, barking at two off duty knights to guard the gate as he passed them.

**Merlin**

"What is your name?" Arthur asked carefully, eyeing the man cautiously. The man stayed silent, his eyes trained on Arthur, a smarmy smile on his face.

"I'll get him to talk," Gwaine announced from behind the king, removing his sword from his scabbard.

"Go check on Merlin," Arthur responded softly, keeping his back to the knight.

"You can't possibly…"

"That's an order."

Gwaine snorted, "An order? Don't forget who you are talking to, _Princess_."

"Gwaine please." Arthur clenched his eyes shut, grasping at the last strains of patience he had, still keeping his back on the knight.

"I'll be back," the long-haired knight snarled at the man. He then stormed away, Arthur listening to his footsteps until they disappeared.

"Insubordinate," the man commented in a sing-song voice. Arthur's eyes opened, glaring at the sneering man. "I wouldn't let my men talkety-talk to me like that."

"Well, you aren't me," Arthur snapped crossing his arms. "Are you going to tell me your name now?"

"Just like that servant of yours." The man snickered, ignoring Arthur's question, wincing when the action pulled on his broken ribs. "No equal is he yet you treat him as one. Shame, shame, shame Kingy-King."

"Just tell me who you are," Arthur growled through clenched teeth, feeling his patience wearing thin.

"Though would you treat him as an equal if you knew what he was?" Something sparked in the man's eyes and his smile turned oily, his voice dropping to a whisper. "He's a bad, bad boy, Kingy-King."

"I've heard enough." Arthur walked away from the man, ignoring him as he called, "You may choose what you wish to see, but all is not what it seems, Kingy-King."

**Merlin**

Arthur dropped by Gaius' chambers that night, still trying to shake what the man had said. What did that mean? All wasn't what it seemed? And what did he mean he by Merlin being a 'bad, bad boy?' Did Merlin do something? Had he broken the law? Could he possibly be…?

Arthur shook the dark thought away, knocking softly on Gaius' door. It was a few seconds before it opened, revealing a rumpled looking Merlin. His hair was sticking up, an old, hand carved crutch held tightly in his hand, the pant leg of his left leg bulky where bandages, no doubt, swathed his wound, and his left shoulder was bound up in a cloth sling. His face was unnaturally pale, dark circles stood out under his eyes, and he looked as if he could use a weeks' worth of rest. He had seen better days.

"Hello," Merlin greeted with a tired smile, taking a step back to let Arthur inside.

"Hello," Arthur repeated closing the door behind him. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine," the younger man replied, slowly limping towards the table.

"Where's Gaius?" The blond looked around, noting the lack of the physician.

"Gaius just left to attend to one of the villager's children." Merlin slowly sank into a chair, placing his crutch on the table.

"Ah," Arthur responded nodding, taking a seat across from Merlin. "So, I talked to your attacker."

Merlin froze for a moment, his face carefully schooled while several dozen emotions flickered around his eyes, before softly asking, "What did he say?"

Arthur watched Merlin carefully, thinking over everything the man said, everything he _may_ have implied, and softly lied, "Nothing important."

* * *

**Question: Since you guys are very invested in this story (this has become a very fan heavily written story) I wanted to get your opinion on the next chapter. I have two prompts in mind. One) Poisoned Merlin or two) half-frozen Merlin. Which do you guys prefer? I'm going to write both eventually, but which one do you want to read next? Let me know.**


	17. The Chill Pt 1

**Frozen Merlin won! So, this is for those who voted and thank you to Leahelisabeth for the prompt. Poison is coming up next, but this one is getting a part two before that happens. So, yeah, part 2 is coming soon.**

**So, thanks to everyone who reviewed and alerted and favorited. Those who voted for poison, I'm sorry for not doing your choice first, but as I stated above poison will be written.**

**Thanks for reading, I don't own anyone, and leave me a comment if you can.**

**Bye!**

* * *

Merlin could sense the magic in the air. It wasn't strong, nor was it particularly dangerous, but he felt the connection, the familiar pull as he wandered the area, seeking out kindling. A ways away, he could hear Arthur and the knights laughing, their muffled voices following Merlin's every move.

Stooping to pick up another branch, Merlin suddenly felt something darker surround him. He slowly straightened up, listening hard as he dropped his sticks. He felt his magic spark to life, leaving his fingertips tingling. He looked around, eyes darting from one surface to the next, looking for the threat. His blue eyes snapped to his friends, but they hadn't seemed to sense any changes.

Slowly, Merlin backed away from the clearing, heading back towards his friends, still looking around. About midway there, he felt something slice across the back of his neck. Hissing, he placed his hand on the wound, his fingertips coming away sticky. He brought his hand to his eyes, looking at the blue substance coating his fingers, mixing with his blood.

"What the hell?" he whispered just as the blue stuff evaporated into his skin, leaving his blood behind. He reeled back, eyes wide, studying his fingers closely. When the liquid didn't reappear, Merlin wiped his blood on his breeches and slowly stooped to pick up the sticks. His eyes made one, final sweep of the area before he headed back to his friends.

"What took you so long?" Arthur asked the moment Merlin joined the knights.

"I, uh, nothing," Merlin responded softly, dropping the sticks to the ground. Ignoring the wary look Arthur threw him, Merlin turned his attention to the fire, trying to get it lit.

"What on earth happened to your neck?" He felt fingers settle on the wound, but Merlin tensed up and shied away from Arthur.

"I'm fine," he insisted returning to the fire. "Don't worry about it." He was very much aware of the knights exchanging skeptical and worried looks, but he pretended he didn't see them.

Once he got the fire going, Merlin stepped away from the flame to go get his bag. He tried to ignore the shiver that went down his spine, but it didn't stop him from pulling his jacket tighter around him. He kept his eyes peeled for anymore strange anomalies, or whatever had attacked him, but the magic had returned to its normal, non-threatening vibe. In fact, had Merlin's neck _not_ been stinging he would have believed that nothing had attacked him at all.

He grabbed his bag, very much aware of a bazillion or so goose pimples erupting all over his body when his jacket's sleeve rode up his arm. Another shudder went through him, his hands shaking slightly. He clenched his bag tightly with his right hand, his left hand curling into a tight fist, and he willed his hands to still.

Merlin gave up after a few seconds, very much aware of Arthur calling his name, and buried his left hand in his pocket, clutching his bag even tighter as he carried it back to the fire. He sat next to the flame, the slowly building heat making him mildly warmer but not enough to fight off the shivers starting to wrack his body.

He pressed on, knowing he had to make dinner otherwise he wouldn't hear the end of it from the others, but it became increasingly harder as his hands began to shake more and more violently. He dropped his stirring spoon twice, spilled chopped carrots all over the ground, and managed to knick himself with his cutting knife.

When Gwaine noticed Merlin's bleeding fingers, the knight gently took the knife from him and softly asked, "Are you okay, mate?"

"Fine," Merlin lied trying to keep his teeth from chattering. He was just so cold, but that didn't make any sense; it was the middle of the summer. He thought back to whatever attacked him, his trembling hand automatically going to his still stinging neck. He wrenched his hand away, the wound ice cold.

"Merlin, why's your neck blue?" Gwaine's fingers rested on the back of the warlock's neck. He pulled his hand away just as Merlin had, eyeing the younger man worriedly. Leaning forward, he breathed, "What happened to you?"

**Merlin**

Through chattering teeth, Merlin explained what had happened. Arthur immediately called him an idiot while he crouched down next to the younger man, checking the wound out again. Leon offered Merlin his cloak plus a blanket, while Gwaine attended to the stew.

"Do you know what it looked like?" Arthur asked curiously, his fingers warm against Merlin's icy skin. The younger man shook his head, trying and failing to keep his shivers at bay. Arthur sighed heavily, placing his free hand to his face. "Okay," he started slowly, lowering his hand, "we're going to get you back to Gaius. Perhaps he knows what did this."

"C-Camelot is s-still a d-day's ride a-away," Merlin stammered clutching Leon's blanket tighter to his shoulders but still unable to staunch off the cold. He felt Percival settle down next to him, the bigger man wrapping his arm around the younger man's shoulder. Elyan dropped down on Merlin's left, mimicking Percival's movements, and soon the warlock was cocooned between the two knights. He felt marginally warmer, but he doubted it'd last long.

"Merlin, you seem to be freezing to…" Arthur trailed off, no doubt unable to bring himself to say 'to death.' The king shook his head and said, "We can't waste time. We need to find out what is wrong with you so we can fix it."

"A-and w-w-we're not g-g-going to a-achieve t-t-that t-t-tonight," Merlin stammered burrowing deeper into his blanket, feeling Elyan and Percival shift closer to him. "W-we s-s-stopped to m-m-make c-camp, and w-w-we s-s-s…" Merlin's chattering teeth knocked together hard, cutting him off, and he felt for sure he had cracked a molar.

Arthur leaned forward, his eyes meeting Merlin's, and he sighed. "Fine," he said softly, looking away from his friend, "we'll stay for tonight. But you are staying near the fire, understood?"

"I-I-I d-d-doubt it'll d-do a-a-any g-good," Merlin muttered but still agreed, humoring Arthur. When another chill ran through him, he leaned into Percival, seeking any warmth he could get, wondering if he'd ever be warm again.

**Merlin**

After a questionable meal ('seriously, Gwaine, how did you manage to turn the stew gray'), Merlin found himself huddled against Gwaine and Leon, staring into the fire, shivering violently. He could hear Arthur and Elyan muttering back and forth, the latter volunteering to ride ahead, inform Gaius about what was going on.

"At the very least, Gaius may have a clue what's going on by the time you return," Elyan said softly.

"But what if whatever attacked Merlin attacks you, too," Arthur stated and Merlin could feel their eyes on him.

"I'll go with him," Leon stated next to Merlin. He stood up, Percival taking his place mere seconds later. "We'll leave before first light."

"Alright," Arthur agreed reluctantly, sighing, "but if either of you are attacked you come straight back here. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sire," the two knights said together.

Afterwards, things became a bit fuzzy to Merlin. His shivering was becoming worse, his skin felt as if it were made of pure ice, and he was finding it nearly impossible to keep his eyes open. His head drooped to the side, settling on Percival's shoulder, his eyes slipping closed.

He wasn't exactly sure when he fell asleep, but when he awoke he was freezing, his body quaking so violently he couldn't control his trembling, a pair of arms wrapped tightly around him, a body flush against his back, a few more blankets covering his body. Gwaine lay in front of him, his forehead resting against the younger man's shoulder, and Merlin found it nearly impossible to move. He wasn't exactly complaining either, if he moved he was fairly certain he'd turn to ice.

He felt movement near his head, and he heard a familiar voice ask, "Merlin, are you awake?"

The younger man tried speaking, but his chattering teeth wouldn't allow any words to escape, so he nodded, moving his head so he could meet Arthur's blue eyes. The king gave him a sympathetic look before saying, "We're heading out in an hour. Will you be okay to travel?" Merlin wanted to nod, but he knew Arthur would call him on his lie, so he merely shrugged.

"We can always send for Gaius," Arthur whispered resting his hand on the side of Merlin's neck. He turned the younger man's head, ignoring his weak protests, and checked over his wound. The blond was quiet for far too long, but finally he released Merlin's head and shook Percival awake. Weight shifted from behind Merlin and he could hear hushed whispering before Percival stood, Arthur immediately taking his place.

"I'll be back with Gaius," Percival said softly, pulling his boots on. He then ran towards the horses, riding away mere moments later.

"W-w-what…?" Merlin stammered trying to turn his body.

"We're going to fix you, Merlin," Arthur said softly, resting his hand on his friend's shoulder, his voice barely above a whisper. "You're going to be fine." He sounded as if Merlin were about to die, and that left a horrible, sickening pit in the young warlock's stomach.


	18. The Chill Pt 2

**Here's the second part. I actually have started planning the poison chapter, so that one should be up in a few days... hopefully.**

**So, thanks for reading, leave me a comment if you can, and thanks to everyone who reviewed, alerted, and favorited last chapter.**

**I still don't own 'em.**

**Bye!**

* * *

Gaius arrived around mid-day the next day, following Leon and Elyan, Percival bringing up the rear. Arthur sat up from his slumped position on the ground, keeping one hand wrapped tightly around Merlin's ice-cold ankle, shielding his eyes from the sun. Gwaine sat to his right, back against a log, his eyes darting around, looking for an unseen threat. Merlin lay between the two, head resting in Gwaine's lap, wrapped in a half-dozen blankets, still feebly quaking.

It wasn't lost on Arthur how similar this was to the Dorocha, but where the Dorocha killed everything in their wake, this attack seemed to be _only_ on Merlin. Gwaine and Arthur had spent two days watching, waiting for whatever went after Merlin, but neither had been attacked. And seeing his friends return without incident just proved that Merlin had been targeted. Arthur just wanted to know why.

"Has he gotten any worse?" Gaius asked the moment he was within hearing distance, struggling to kneel next to Merlin.

"No, but…" Arthur trailed off, gesturing for Gwaine to pull the blankets away from Merlin's face, showing off the pale flesh underneath, and looked up at Gaius to gauge his reaction. "He's turning blue, Gaius."

"Is this why you sent for me?" Gaius asked slowly, face hard to read, his blue eyes scanning the pale, blue flesh.

"Yes," Arthur answered nodding. "I haven't told him yet, but it's going to become obvious."

"Has he awoken at all?" Gaius looked up, his eyes settling on Arthur's.

"A few moments here or there," Arthur replied running a hand through his hair. "Can you tell what's causing it?"

"It reminds me of the Dorocha," Gaius murmured studying Merlin closer, "but I don't think they have been summoned again."

"I thought that, too, but this seems different." Arthur explained his suspicions, once again trying to gauge the older man's reaction. Gaius merely nodded, resting a hand against Merlin's neck. A curious expression crossed his face and he reached for his bag. "What is it?"

"I have seen this before," Gaius explained taking an old, green, leather-bound book from his bag. He flipped through the pages, stopping somewhere in the middle. "This is sidhe magic," Gaius stated after a long pause, turning the book to show Arthur a hand drawn picture of a sharp featured creature bathed in blue light.

"Why would the sidhe attack _Merlin_?" Arthur gave Gaius an incredulous look, his eyes darting to his servant.

"I do not know, sire," Gaius replied softly, turning his book back towards himself, resting it in his lap. The king could tell he was lying, the older man refused to meet his eyes, but when he opened his mouth to question Gaius further he felt Merlin move against him, distracting him from his inquires.

"Hey," Gwaine said softly, speaking for the first time, running a hand through Merlin's hair. "Are you okay?" Merlin opened his mouth to respond, thought better of it, and nodded. He turned his head, bottle blue eyes settling on Gaius, and he smiled.

"You're going to be fine, Merlin," Gaius informed the younger man, and Merlin nodded again.

"Do you have any idea how to make him well?" Arthur questioned worriedly, his eyes locked on Merlin's faintly blue face.

"One," Gaius admitted with a sigh, turning his attention back to Arthur, "but it can be dangerous."

"What is it?" Arthur was willing to do whatever he had to, to insure Merlin's safety. He hated admitting it, but Merlin was the first friend he ever had, one that actually treated him like a human and _not_ Uther Pendragon's son, and Arthur could not bear to imagine anything horrible happening to his friend.

"There is a lake," Gaius started softly, uncertainly. "A very special lake, it's depths the entrance of a very special, very rare place. In order to cure Merlin, he must be submerged in that lake."

"I can do that," Arthur replied nodding already pushing himself to his feet. Halfway up, Gaius grabbed his wrist and pulled him back down. "What?" Arthur noted the worried, almost terrified look on the older man's face.

"You don't understand, Arthur," Gaius started softly, leaning forward. "In order to save Merlin, you must kill him."

"What?" Arthur was certain he had heard wrong. What Gaius was suggesting could not possibly be true. He wasn't going to kill Merlin.

"That's not going to happen," Gwaine said sharply, leaning almost protectively over Merlin. "You'll have to pry him from my cold, dead arms if you even try." He shot Arthur a sharp look, and the blond glared in return.

"It's the only way to save him," Gaius insisted sitting back on his heels, running a hand through his long hair. "He is freezing from the inside out and will continue to do so until he..." Gaius trailed off, sadness washing over his face. "I don't like it anymore than you do, but it has to be done."

Arthur was conflicted. He wanted Merlin to get better, he truly did, but not at the expense of killing him. With a sigh, he glanced down at his friend, Merlin's blue eyes trained on Arthur, no doubt listening carefully to their conversation, and the king knew what he had to do.

He drew in deep breath and softly asked, "What do you want to do, Merlin?" Ultimately it wasn't anyone's decision but Merlin's, and if he was lucid enough to understand what they were saying, he was lucid enough to decide whether or not he wanted to die.

Merlin was quiet for a long moment, and Arthur almost thought he wasn't going to answer, but finally he stammered, I-I w-want y-you t-to d-d-do i-it."

"Alright," Arthur stated nodding, ignoring the outraged look on Gwaine's face, "we'll ride out at dawn." He tried to stand, but Merlin grabbed him, ice-cold skin nearly burning Arthur's wrist, and with surprising strength he yanked Arthur down. "Merlin, what is it?"

"I-I w-w-want _y-y-you_ to d-do i-it," he whispered, blue eyes locked on blue.

"Merlin, I…"

"P-please, Arthur." With those two words, Arthur felt his resolve crumble and he nodded. Merlin weakly smiled, releasing Arthur.

The blond stood, turning to Gaius. "Where is this lake?"

"I'll show you," Gaius responded struggling to his feet.

"I'm coming with," Gwaine volunteered staying on the ground. It was almost like he didn't trust Arthur.

"No," Arthur replied evenly, "you and the others are to go back to Camelot."

"Like hell we are," Percival exclaimed and he, Elyan, and Leon moved forward, the latter two looking as if they were about to argue, too.

"Arthur is quite right," Gaius commented before Arthur could order his knights to stand down. "It is far too dangerous for all of us. The sidhe are not creatures you want to test, and with this many swords…" he gestured to the knights. "It would be best if Arthur and I went alone with Merlin."

"Sire…" Leon started but Arthur held up his hand, cutting the knight off.

"You four are to go back to Camelot, but…" Arthur trailed off, glancing down at Merlin, "but if you do not hear from us in two days time you come find us. Do I make myself clear?" They wanted to argue, he could tell, but it would only waste time they most likely did not have, so reluctantly Leon, Percival, and Elyan agreed.

Arthur turned to Gwaine, expecting a response from him, but he merely glared at the ground, stubbornly and uncharacteristically refusing to speak. The blond took a step forward, hand raised. "Gwaine…"

"If he dies," Gwaine started looking up at the king, his eyes darker than usual, "then you die." He then looked away, ignoring the aghast looks on the other knights and Gaius' faces. Arthur merely stared at the dark-haired knight for a long moment before turning to Gaius and saying, "We leave at dawn."

**Merlin**

Arthur could feel the magic buzzing in the air the moment they were within seeing distance of the lake. It made him feel very uncomfortable, his hand hovering near his sword, his other arm tightening around a still shivering Merlin. He knew it was from years of being raised to fear and destroy magic, knew it most likely wouldn't hurt him, at least he hoped it wouldn't. A part of him wanted to believe magic wasn't all bad, Gaius and a few other magic users had proven that to him, but he couldn't easily let go of prejudice that had been ingrained into his mind over two decades.

"How does this work exactly?" Arthur asked needing to get his mind off the magic surrounding him.

"He will have to be submerged into the lake," Gaius explained from beside Arthur, ducking to avoid a low hanging branch.

"For how long?" Arthur didn't want to think how long someone had to be held under water before they stopped breathing.

"You will know," Gaius replied evasively, pulling on his reins to bring his horse to a stop. At Arthur's questioning look, Gaius said, "We need to walk the rest of the way."

Arthur nodded, carefully getting off his horse, making sure he kept Merlin from falling. Once on the ground, the blond gingerly helped his friend down, keeping a firm grip on him when his legs threatened to give out on him.

The trio walked towards the lake, Arthur supporting Merlin, Gaius clutching tightly to his bag as he looked around. Something felt familiar about the lake, almost as if Arthur had been here before, but he couldn't recall the memory.

"Something wrong, sire?" Gaius questioned curiously.

"No, it's just…" Arthur trailed off, looking around. "Does this place feel familiar to you?"

Instead of answering, Gaius hurriedly said, "Here we are." Arthur furrowed his eyebrows at the physician's reaction, filing it away for later.

As Gaius tended to Merlin, Arthur removed his armor and boots, laying them next to a rock. He turned to see Gaius take off Merlin's blankets, jacket, and boots, the younger man weakly complaining when the light, warm breeze hit his exposed, even bluer skin, his shivering becoming worse.

"He's ice cold," Gaius commented allowing Arthur to take Merlin's weight.

"Not for long," Arthur muttered hopeful, guiding Merlin towards the lake. "Are you sure this is going to work?" he asked glancing back at Gaius, his toes on the edge of the water. He needed to make sure this was actually going to help Merlin and not end in his death.

"I would not be here if I weren't sure," Gaius replied his eyes flicking to Merlin. Arthur knew Gaius treated Merlin like his son, would do just about anything for him, and for that Arthur knew he could trust the older man.

With a deep breath, he dragged Merlin into the lake. The water was neither warm nor cold, and again Arthur felt a familiarity, but he still couldn't place why and it was bothering him. He decided not to dwell on it now, he had more pressing matters to attend to, and glanced down at Merlin.

"I am very sorry about this," he whispered before plunging the younger man into the water. It took a few moments, but finally, despite knowing what was going on, Merlin started to weakly struggle against Arthur's hold, trying to get back to the surface, needing air.

"I'm sorry," Arthur murmured holding him down, forcing himself to keep looking at Merlin, trying to remind himself that this was actually helping his friend.

When the younger man stopped struggling, Arthur very nearly panicked, almost dragged him from the lake and back to land, but Gaius called, "Wait, sire! Just wait!"

"I'm trying," Arthur snarled fighting his impulses, keeping a hold of Merlin. It was quiet for a minute, then two, and three, but finally, just when Arthur was about to say 'forget it' and get Merlin out, he heard a haunting, blood curling scream and a gust of blue erupted from the lake, surrounding Arthur.

"Now sire," Gaius said and Arthur didn't need any more prompting. He wrapped his arms around Merlin's suddenly much warmer skin, dragging him from the lake and towards the shore.

"He's not breathing," Arthur said gently setting his friend on the ground. He dropped down next to Merlin, Gaius dropping down next to him, and the two started trying to get Merlin breathing again. "What was that scream?" Arthur asked between breaths.

"That was the sidhe that attacked Merlin," Gaius responded pressing down on Merlin's chest, trying to force the water from his lungs. "Its spell was broken." Arthur merely nodded, returning to his task at hand.

"Come on, Merlin," Arthur whispered, breathing more air into his lungs, "breathe. Come on." He already lost his mother, his father, his sister; he was not losing the closest thing to a best friend he had ever had; losing Merlin was not an option.

Finally, Merlin gasped, coughing painfully. Arthur let out a shaky breath as he allowed Gaius to turn the younger man on his side. As water was forced from Merlin's lungs, Arthur rested a hand on his shoulder and murmured, "You're okay. You're going to be okay."

**Merlin**

Merlin laid horizontally across his bed, reveling in the fact that he was actually warm again. He actually had a new appreciation for the summer time, and would never complain about the heat again. Well, he probably would, but he'd definitely keep his complaints to the bare minimum.

According to Gaius, who had been hovering like a mother hen since the lake incident, he had been attacked because of his track record with the sidhe. He had killed three (of course, he couldn't exactly count Sophia and her father), thwarting the plan of a higher sidhe elder in the process, so really he was actually surprised they waited this long to come after him.

Someone knocked at his door, and Merlin sat up, calling, "Come in!"

The door opened and Arthur walked in and asked, "Are you going to just lie around all day?"

"It's kind of hard to do things when my over-protective mentor and prat of a king won't let me leave my chambers. Or when Gwaine is standing outside the door, waiting for me to try to sneak out, only to escort me back inside."

"You nearly died, Merlin," Arthur replied trying and failing to sound nonchalant.

"I nearly died a lot," Merlin retorted softly.

"Yes, about that." Arthur took a seat at the foot of Merlin's bed, meeting his eyes. "Are you going to tell me what you did to make the sidhe attack you?"

"It must be my charming personality," Merlin replied with an easy shrug, a smile on his face.

"Oh, sure, because it's _so_ charming," Arthur teased but he still sounded skeptical. He suddenly became serious and said, "If you're in a trouble."

"I'm not," the younger man answered quickly, shaking his head. "I can promise you that Arthur. It's probably all the times I've saved your royal backside. Or maybe they thought I was you."

"Yeah, right." Arthur chuckled, obviously finding the idea absurd. "That'll be the day."

"I resent that."

Arthur grinned, getting to his feet. He started towards the door but stopped, turning to face his servant again. "Have I ever been to that lake, Merlin?"

"Why?" Was there a possibility that he was starting to remember almost drowning as a result of Sophia and her father? Why, after so many years, it was starting to come back Merlin didn't know, but he figured he should get all the facts before he tried to explain why he lied.

"It just felt familiar," Arthur responded shrugging. "I don't know. Perhaps I went when I was a child." He spared Merlin one final look, something unreadable on his face, but finally he sighed and said, "If you almost die again I'll kill you myself."

As he walked out, Merlin called, "Wouldn't that be a little counterproductive?"

"Five syllables? Impressive." Arthur raised his eyebrows, and, with a smirk, closed the door behind him.

* * *

**P.S. I have tried to keep this mainly cannon throughout each chapter, but a lot of you keep asking for a reveal chapter. So, my question is how many of you actually want to see me attempt a reveal chapter? If enough of you want one I may actually try to write it.**

**See ya!**


	19. The Phantoms Pt 1

**I'm breaking this into parts. For some reason that has become my favorite thing. Sorry. I also tried to do something a little different with the poisoning, but I'm not sure if I succeeded.**

**This is for everyone who asked for poisoned Merlin (I think there were a few of you, but I don't have your names in front of me) and I hope you enjoy this.**

**Thanks for everyone who reviewed, alerted, and favorited last chapter.**

**I don't own 'em and drop me a comment if you can.**

* * *

No one had heard of Lady Amelia. She claimed to be from a kingdom very, very far away, located deep in the woods, surrounded by a vast lake. According to her, her kingdom had been attacked by bandits, her knights fatally wounded, and her father shot dead by a dozen arrows. She begged, tears clinging to her dark eyelashes, for Arthur to help hide her, just in case her enemies came for her, and the king, the bleeding heart that he was, agreed readily. He even offered to send men out to this 'alleged' kingdom, try to get it back under her control, but Lady Amelia told him it was no use, the bandits had burned the castle to the ground, leaving the once vast kingdom a mere shell of its former self.

Merlin had listened to Lady Amelia's entire story, standing to Arthur's right, not believing a single word. There was something off about the woman, something he couldn't quite pinpoint, but it left a dark, hollow pit in his stomach. He aspired to keep an eye on Lady Amelia, finding it easier than he thought when Arthur assigned Merlin to her quarters.

"Give her whatever she needs," the king muttered as he dismissed the court, and Merlin readily agreed, noting the surprised look on Arthur's face. He didn't argue _that_ much did he?

Merlin guided Lady Amelia through the castle, acting the perfect servant, gesturing to the kitchens as they passed them and saying, "Be careful of Cook. She acts all saintly, but I've seen her spit in food."

"Really?"

"Well, no, but I wish she would," Merlin retorted with a forced grin. Lady Amelia giggled softly, resting her hand on Merlin's arm. He glanced at her hand for a second, and she seemed to blush before removing it.

"Sorry," she muttered crossing her arms behind her back, looking around. "Camelot is so much bigger than my kingdom," she continued, a sad look crossing her face. "I will miss it."

"So, soldiers attacked your castle?" Merlin fished, mixing up the details to see if he could catch her in a lie.

"No, bandits," Amelia corrected softly.

"My mistake," Merlin murmured stopping outside of one of the guest quarters. He opened the door, leading Amelia inside. "Just find me if you need anything, my lady." He bowed, turning to walk out of the room, but stopped when Amelia called his name. "Yes, my lady."

Merlin turned back to her, his body completely tensing when she backed him into the door and kissed him roughly on the lips. He raised his hands, eyes wide, the kiss making the hollow pit in his stomach increase tenfold.

She pulled back, fair cheeks a faint pink, and stammered, "I-I am sorry. I don't know what came over me."

"It's fine," Merlin replied, voice monotone, reaching behind him to open the door. "Good night, my lady." He backed out of the room, running into the door. Once outside, he closed the door behind him and practically ran back to his chambers.

**Merlin**

"I'm telling you Gaius," Merlin started sifting through the ingredients, looking for thyme, "there's something off about Lady Amelia."

"Why do you say this?" Gaius asked curiously, accepting the jar Merlin handed him. He checked the label, throwing Merlin a tired look, and put it back, grabbing another jar, right next to his nephew's arm.

"It's just…" Merlin trailed off, toying with a jar of sage. He debated whether to tell Gaius about the kiss or not, but thought better of it and instead said, "She gives off a sort of dark vibe or something. I'm not exactly sure how to explain it, but I just feel wrong whenever she's around."

"Perhaps you are picking up on her ill feelings towards the people who destroyed her home," Gaius suggested taking the sage from Merlin's hands and setting it down next to the thyme.

"No, I don't think it's that," Merlin murmured absentmindedly alphabetizing the remaining herbs. "There's something about her that I…" he trailed off, eyes widening when he spotted a familiar figure standing by the doorway.

"You what, Merlin?" Gaius glanced over at him, no doubt noticing his faraway look, and softly asked, "What is it?"

"Freya," Merlin whispered dropping the jar he held in his hands. It shattered against the floor, sending glass and tealeaves everywhere, startling Merlin and causing Freya to vanish. "Freya," he called, missing Gaius' worried look, and rushed across the room, frantically looking for her. "Freya!"

"There's no one there, Merlin," Gaius said softly, approaching the younger man, resting his hand on his shoulder. "Are you alright?"

"I-I saw her, Gaius," Merlin responded quietly, vision blurring slightly, turning to face his mentor, ignoring his question. "She was standing right here." He gestured to the spot where she stood, silently begging Gaius to believe him.

"Perhaps I should tell Arthur you are ill," Gaius suggested worriedly.

"No, I-I…" Merlin trailed off, his eyes narrowing slightly as he asked, "You do believe me, right?"

"I believe that you believe you saw her," Gaius answered evasively, grabbing Merlin's shoulders and attempting to steer him back to his room. "I shall tell Arthur you are ill and make you a sleeping draught for…"

"I don't need a sleeping draught," Merlin snapped wrenching himself away from Gaius. "I know what I saw, she was standing right there. I saw her." He glared at his mentor for a few seconds before turning on his heel and heading towards the door.

"Where are you going?"

Ignoring the older man, Merlin threw the door open, slamming it shut behind him. Once outside he froze, resting his head against the door, feeling his anger drain from him. He was being stupid, yelling at Gaius like that. He knew Freya had died, had held her in his arms as she took her last breath, and had even made sure she had a proper funeral. There was no way he had seen her just a few moments ago. Not unless she decided to haunt him, but why would she start now, nearly ten years after her death? It just didn't make any sense.

Unless she was here to warn him, perhaps warn him about Lady Amelia. That would make a lot more sense, and it would explain the hollow feeling Merlin got every time he saw Amelia. Swallowing heavily, making a mental note to apologize to Gaius later, Merlin set off for Lady Amelia's chambers. He had to test his theory, see if Freya's sudden appearance was a warning, and perhaps learn what Lady Amelia was really doing in Camelot.

**Merlin**

When he arrived at Lady Amelia's chambers, he felt his stomach tighten when he spotted Gwaine, Leon, and Arthur exiting the room. He skidded to a halt, giving questioning looks to each of his friends, and asked, "Is something wrong?"

"I don't know, _Mer_lin, you tell us," Arthur retorted crossing his arms, his face hard to read. Gwaine and Leon lingered in the background, both looking slightly worried yet also betrayed, eyeing Merlin cautiously.

"What did I do?" Merlin looked between the three men, involuntarily taking a step back.

"Seize him," Arthur said softly, uncertainty flickering across his eyes for a few seconds before resolve replaced it. Gwaine and Leon reluctantly stepped forward, both seizing one of Merlin's arms, and began marching him towards the dungeons.

"Arthur, what did I do?" Merlin called over his shoulder. "Arthur, please, just tell me what I did."

"Why didn't you tell me, Merlin?" Gwaine asked softly, his voice bordering on broken. "You're my best friend. You could have trusted me."

Oh no, they knew he was a sorcerer. How did they know he was a sorcerer? Did Lady Amelia figure it out and tell them? How did she even figure it out? Perhaps she was a sorceress and sensed the magic on Merlin and turned him in because he got in the way of her nefarious plans. Maybe that's why he felt so uneasy around her; the hollow feeling was because he sensed evil on her. He needed to break free, stop her, and immediately began struggling. The knights only held on tighter, their grips nearly bruising his arms.

"Arthur please!" Merlin screamed over his shoulder. "Please, don't do this! You can't trust her! She's evil…"

"I don't believe anything that comes out of your traitorous mouth, Sorcerer," Arthur snarled turning his back on Merlin. "You'll be hung at mid-day."

"Arthur, please!"

"Merlin," he heard someone calling his name. "Merlin, are you alright?"

"What?" he blinked, suddenly finding himself standing in front of Lady Amelia's door again, no longer being restrained. His vision was blurry so he blinked again, feeling a few tears roll down his face, clearing it, a concerned looking Arthur standing in front of him.

"I asked if you were alright," Arthur stated softly. "You've been standing here for almost ten minutes. Are you ill? Do I need to call Gaius? Why are you crying?"

"I-I…" Merlin drew in a shuddering breath, another tear rolling down his cheek. He dug his palms into his eyes, sniffing, feeling both relief and something cold and unsettling slithering through him. He cleared his throat and asked, "What are you doing here?"

"I was just going to check on Lady Amelia when I found you here. What are _you_ doing here?"

"I…" Merlin trailed off, wondering if Arthur would believe his suspicions about Lady Amelia. He flashed back to his vision, or whatever, and shook his head, dislodging the thought from his brain. "I'm here to check on her, too," he lied and strode by Arthur, heading towards the door. Merlin knocked softly, waited a beat, and threw it open only to freeze in the doorway.

Lady Amelia was gone.


	20. The Phantoms Pt 2

**There will be one more chapter in this prompt before I move on. This one is probably one of the most fun I've written. And I have xion000 and smokeydirtycat for the prompt.**

**I also thank you all for reviewing, alerting, and favoriting last chapter. I hope you guys enjoy this, leave me a comment if you can, and I don't own anyone associated with Merlin.**

**Thanks for reading!**

* * *

"Gwaine, Elyan check the vaults, make sure she hasn't taken anything. Leon, Percival take a few men, check out the area she described during her story, confirm whether or not she had been lying. The rest of you, fan out, find out if she's hidden herself away anywhere else." The knights nodded at Arthur's orders, dispersing, leaving the king and his servant hurrying along the corridors.

"What do you need me to do, Arthur?" Merlin asked hurrying to keep up.

"I need you to tell me exactly what happened last night after you two left the throne room," Arthur replied noting the flash of several emotions flickering in his eyes. "Come on, Merlin, you were going to see her this morning, way earlier than you even wake me up, something must have happened."

"I-I…" Merlin trailed off, blue eyes widening as they settled on an empty corner. "No," he whispered backing away, shaking his head. "No, I-I didn't…" backed into the wall and slid to the floor. "I'm s-sorry. I'm sorry."

"Merlin?" Arthur rushed forward, crouching down next to the younger man, trying very hard to ignore the tears streaming down his face. It reminded him of earlier that morning, when he found his servant standing outside of Amelia's room, silently crying, just as unresponsive as he appeared to be right that second.

"You," he called to a passing maid, making her stop in her tracks, "go and get Gaius. Bring him here."

"Y-yes, sire," she stammered and hurried off, shooting a worried look over her shoulder.

"Merlin? Merlin, are you with me?" Arthur tried to snap the servant out of whatever he was seeing, but when he failed again he sat back on his heels, running a hand through his hair. "What has happened to you?" the king whispered softly, not expecting an answer.

Merlin continued to apologize to whomever he was seeing up until Gaius appeared, a medicine bag held tightly in his hands. He knelt on Merlin's other side, digging around his bag, bringing out a sleeping draught.

"Are you certain he'll take it?" Arthur asked worriedly, eyeing the draught cautiously.

"It'll be just enough to get him back to his room," Gaius responded popping the cork out of the bottle. The familiar popping sound seemed to do what Arthur could not, Merlin blinking and shaking his head, glassy eyes snapping back into focus.

"Merlin?" Arthur leaned forward, holding his hand up to stop Gaius from administrating the potion. "Merlin, are you alright?"

"I saw him," Merlin whispered hoarsely, Arthur finally realizing just how hard his servant was shaking. "H-he was standing r-right there."

"Who?" Gaius asked softly.

"M-my father."

**Merlin**

"He should be asleep for a while," Gaius informed the king as he shut Merlin's door.

"What on earth is happening to him?" Arthur asked curiously, arms folded against his chest, eyes resting on his servant's door.

"I do not know, sire," Gaius replied grimly, shaking his head. "But this is not the first time he's seen something. Just this morning he claimed to see someone from his past, but I know for sure that she died long ago."

Arthur wanted to ask who Gaius was referring to, figuring it had to be a childhood friend since Merlin didn't know many females at Camelot (and just as few were deceased), but the king figured that was something for Merlin to divulge, so he opted to say, "He was acting strange outside Lady Amelia chambers, too; seeing something that was not there. And…"

"And what, Arthur?"

"He kept whispering 'Arthur please.' I'm not sure what he was seeing, but it's reminding me of when he had gotten sick a few months ago and I do not like it."

"Nor I sire," Gaius agreed nodding his head. He crossed the room, climbing up the small ladder to access his books. "Something must have attacked him recently," the older man continued checking titles over.

"I don't know," Arthur admitted honestly. "We haven't been out of the castle in a few weeks, and the last stranger Merlin had contact with was Lady…" he trailed off, chewing on his bottom lip, a habit he must have picked up from Guinevere. "You don't think she was more than a potential thief do you?"

"Like a sorceress?"

Arthur shrugged. "It could be, or it could be another one of those sidhe creatures. They only attacked Merlin a few weeks ago, and I doubt they'll stop just because we thwarted them once." Arthur still hadn't gotten a direct answer as to why the sidhe wanted his servant dead, but he had a feeling it had something to do with that lake. He just wished he could remember why it was so familiar to him.

"It's possible," Gaius offered with a curios look, grabbing another book. "But we cannot skive on anything, Arthur. We must look into every possible creature, check over every possible suspect. Lady Amelia's appearance and Merlin's sudden visions could be a mere coincidence."

"Tell me Gaius, when has that ever been the case?" Arthur raised his eyebrows, waiting for the older man to argue with him.

"You do make a good point, sire," Gaius relented carefully climbing down from the ladder, keeping several books tucked under his left arm.

"Gaius," Arthur started watching as the older man carried his books to a table.

"Yes, sire?"

"There's something else that has been bothering me," Arthur continued rubbing the back of his neck.

"Yes sire?" the older man repeated, but something in his eyes told Arthur he already knew what the younger man was about to ask.

"Merlin mentioned his father…"

"That is something you have to ask Merlin about," Gaius interrupted taking a seat at the table, pulling a book towards him. "It is not my story to tell."

Arthur nodded, hating the fact that Merlin never bothered to inform him about meeting his father. The king wondered when exactly it happened, and if he had died or proved to be just another deadbeat father happy to have abandoned his family. A part of Arthur doubted it was the latter, but it still left a bitter feeling in his stomach when he thought about the former. Merlin obviously needed a friend. And if he couldn't have gone to Arthur then who exactly did he go to when his father died?

A knock sounded at the door and Gwaine poked his head inside. "Arthur, Leon and Percival returned."

"And?" The look on Gwaine's face confirmed what Arthur had already suspected. "Very well."

"Oh, and the nuisance is asking for you."

"Thank you," Arthur replied moving towards the door. Before leaving, he turned to Gaius and said, "Keep me informed on your findings."

"I will," Gaius stated with a small nod, not bothering to look up from his thick, dusty book.

**Merlin**

The nuisance was the same man who had attacked Merlin in the forest many months ago. Arthur had left the man's punishment up to Merlin, but the younger man had been unable to actually have him put to death, so Arthur just kept him locked in the dungeons. They still hadn't gotten a name out of him, but he continued to taunt Arthur about not really knowing his servant. The king generally didn't visit.

"Kingy-King," the man greeted when Arthur moved towards his cell, his face breaking out into a crooked smile. "I was wondering when you'd be visiting little ol' me again."

"You asked for me," Arthur stated deadpan, folding his arms tightly against his chest. "I'm not in the mood to listen to your insane prattle. So, either you tell me what you want or I'll feed you to my dogs."

"Threats and insults will get you nowhere, Kingy-King," the man taunted, his grin widening. "Ask me nicely and I may tell you what happened to that naughty servant of yours."

"What about Merlin?" Behind him, Arthur was well-aware of Gwaine glaring at the man, no doubt fighting the urge to unlock the cell and drag the answer from his sneering lips, but Arthur knew one dead prisoner was not about to help them find out what happened to Merlin. So, with forced pleasantries, he softly asked, "_Please, _just tell me what happened to my servant."

"The naughty boy has been punished, Kingy-King," the man whispered, gripping his bars, pressing his face against the metal. "His mind has been poisoned to relive his greatest fears and his past mistakes until they drive him mad. My mistress wanted it done quickly, but not so quickly that the naughty boy does not suffer."

"Who is your _mistress?_" Arthur asked slowly, having a feeling he already knew the answer but wanting to be sure. "Was it the woman who claimed her castle had been destroyed?"

"Always saving the damsel, you are," the man stated giggling. "One of these days it could very well get _you _killed, or your naughty servant boy."

"Is that why you attacked Merlin? Because your _mistress _told you to?"

"I do whatever my mistress tells me," the man replied taking a step back from the bars. "I am a good servant. I do as I am told. I do not act like your naughty servant boy." He suddenly cocked his head to the side, almost as if he were listening to something, and nodded. "Mistress sends her regards, but I must be leaving now. Good-bye, Kingy-King."

"What does that…?" Arthur trailed off when the man pulled out a dagger. "Get the keys," he snapped at Gwaine as he watched the man drive the dagger into his chest.

Giggling feebly, falling to his side, blood seeping from his mouth and chest, the man whispered, "B-by s-sunset you w-will l-lose your p-protector." His eyes then glazed over and he gave one, final shuddering breath before he died.

"What the hell was he talking about?" Gwaine asked glaring at the man, the cell's key clenched tightly in his hand.

"I honestly don't know."

**Merlin**

After the body had been moved from the dungeons, Arthur returned to Gaius' chambers, Gwaine several paces behind him, only to find the older man neck-deep in Latin text. The physician looked up at their entrance and asked, "Did you learn anything useful?"

"No," Arthur responded shaking his head.

"The man's dead," Gwaine added sitting heavily at Gaius' table.

"Did you two…?"

"No, Gaius, he stabbed himself," Arthur answered with a tired sigh. "I think Amelia may have given him a dagger before she fled because I am certain he did not have any weapons on him when we locked him away."

"Percival and I checked multiple times," Gwaine informed the room as he dragged a book towards him. "Besides his crossbow, he only had a pocket knife. I believe you are right, Arthur."

It was such a small gesture on Gwaine's part, agreeing with the king, but for Arthur it meant the tension between them was slowly loosening. He couldn't believe how strained their already taut relationship had been over the past few months, and he had started suspecting Gwaine was only sticking around for the cheap ale and Merlin, but maybe this was a step towards the knight actually becoming more than a reluctant friend to Arthur.

"Have you found anything?" Arthur questioned turning his attention to Gaius.

"I believe we are dealing with the sidhe again," Gaius responded turning the book towards Arthur. "I think Amelia may be an elder or someone working closely to them. They generally come with a servant, but…"

"That was the prisoner," Gwaine and Arthur said together, the former aimlessly flipping pages while the latter leaned against a table. "He said that his mistress wanted Merlin punished," Arthur continued crossing his arms. "He also said something about wanting Merlin to suffer, and that'd Merlin would be dead by sunset."

"Seeing these hallucinations would be more than enough to make Merlin suffer. As for Merlin dying…" Gaius trailed off just as a terrified scream came from Merlin's room followed by a crash and a thump. The three men shared a worried look before scrambling towards the closed door.

Arthur burst in first, followed closely by Gaius and Gwaine. Merlin was huddled in the corner, a broken vase sitting near his feet, his hand bleeding profusely. He appeared to be shaking and, for a terrifying second, it reminded Arthur of the last time the sidhe attacked his servant, but his skin appeared to be a parchment pale this time and not an icy blue.

"Merlin," Arthur said softly, waving Gaius and Gwaine back, slowly approaching the younger man. "Merlin, it's Arthur. Can you hear me?" He crouched down to the servant's level, hesitating for a few seconds before stretching a hand out and gently resting it on the younger man's shoulder. He could feel Merlin trembling against his palm, could hear the younger man's gasping breaths and whimpers, and could practically taste the fear rolling off him.

"It's okay, Merlin," Arthur whispered gripping Merlin's shoulder, "we're going to fix you. I promise and afterwards we are having a very long talk about everything."

"I-I'm sorry, Will," Merlin murmured as a few tears. "I-I'm sorry."

"It's okay, Merlin," Arthur repeated leaning forward to rest his forehead against his friend's. "You're going to be okay."

**Merlin**

Arthur waited until Merlin calmed down before he and Gwaine moved him back to his bed. Leaving him with Gaius, the older man administrating another sleeping draught and fix his hand, Arthur and Gwaine headed towards the front room.

"What are you planning?" Gwaine asked softly, obviously reading something on Arthur's face.

"Amelia is a sidhe, right?" the king started slowly, his locked on the book Gaius had been reading.

"Yes."

"And where did Gaius and I go to help Merlin last time?" Arthur's eyes flicked back to Gwaine's, the knight taking a moment before realization dawned on him. A steely gaze settled over his features and the knight said, "I'm going with you this time."

"Good, I was hoping you'd say that."


	21. The Phantoms PT 3

**Hey guys! So, as much as I love this chapter, I'm not 100% on some parts, so I apologize if it's a little... weak in some parts.**

**Thanks for everyone who reviewed, alerted, favorited, or read last chapter. You guys are amazing!**

**Thanks for reading, drop me a comment if you can, and I do not own these characters.**

**See ya!**

* * *

"Merlin," someone whispered, right in Merlin's ear, startling him from a light, fitful sleep. "Merlin."

"Stop," he croaked bringing his hands up to cover his ears. "Stop it."

"Merlin," the voice whispered a third time.

"Y-you're not r-real," he murmured squeezing his eyes shut. "L-leave me a-alone."

"Merlin," a new voice said, a little louder and clearer, to his immediate left.

His eyes snapped open and he turned to see a familiar face hovering over him. "Freya," he whispered feeling a tear trickle down his cheek. She sat next to him, as real as she had been when he first met her, as real as the _others_ had been.

"Merlin," she said softly, a sad smile on her face. "I am sorry this is happening to you."

"What…?" Why wasn't she accusing him of causing her death? Arthur may have struck the mortal blow, but he still felt a small part of her death had been his fault. Maybe if they had left sooner, if he had told Arthur about his magic, about her, perhaps she'd still be alive. "I'm sorry," he whispered as another tear leaked from the corner of his eye.

"You have nothing to be sorry for," she stated quietly, wiping his tear away with her thumb. She ran her hand down his face, caressing his cheek, and softly said, "I wish I could help you, but I cannot reverse what Amelia did to you."

"Y-you're real?" he whispered. "Y-you n-not a p-part of m-my i-imagination?"

"Yes, I am real," she answered nodding. "I was trying to help you, but I found that I cannot. You need to be the one to kill Amelia, but you must hurry. Arthur has gone after her. He intends to face her with only the help of Gwaine."

"A-Arthur…? G-Gwaine…?" Merlin struggled to sit up, succeeding on his second try. "I need to go…" he glanced at the door, where Gaius was most likely waiting, and then turned his head towards his window. "Will you come with me?" he asked softly, looking back at Freya, but she was already gone.

Taking a stuttering breath, Merlin dragged himself to his feet. The room tilted around him and he reached out, grabbing his bed to keep himself standing. He drew in several deep breaths before letting go and heading towards his window. He needed to help his friends.

**Merlin**

"Gwaine," Arthur started ducking to avoid a low hanging branch.

"Princess," Gwaine retorted lightly, glancing back at Arthur. There was determination behind his jovial façade, something Arthur respected in the knight. Despite his blase attitude towards most things, Gwaine would do whatever he had to insure the safety of those he cared for.

"Did Merlin…?" Arthur trailed off, shaking his head. This was certainly not the time to ask about Merlin's father. There'd be plenty of time to ask after they had saved his incompetent backside. That is _if_ they saved…

_No, _they were going to save Merlin. Failing was not an option on Arthur's part. He had thwarted the sidhe the first time, he could do it again. And he'd ask Merlin, himself, about his father. Not go through a second party like Gwaine.

"Did you give any more thought to what that man said?" Arthur asked instead. It still bothered him, about what the nuisance said about losing his protector. For all the times Merlin said he had saved Arthur, the king hadn't actually construed Merlin as his protector. Perhaps he had been wrong.

"We are not losing Merlin," Gwaine stated vehemently, looking straight ahead again.

"I know, but…"

"Even if I have to rip this bitch's head off with my bare hands, we are not losing Merlin," Gwaine interrupted and Arthur knew the subject had been closed. At least, on Gwaine's end. And Arthur agreed. He was willing to do whatever it took to insure Merlin safety, too.

The two men were quiet for a while, but Gwaine, a bit like Merlin, was never one to keep silent for long, and broke it. "I heard you mention Merlin's father…"

"Eavesdropping, Gwaine?" What surprised Arthur the most was he wasn't exactly surprised. The knight merely shrugged his shoulders. With a sigh, the king continued, "He never mentioned him to me."

"He said something about him to me," Gwaine commented nonchalantly, maneuvering his horse around a downed tree. "It was around the time I'd first come to Camelot, remember after that tavern fight. He said his father had been dead a year."

"That was almost five years ago," Arthur murmured unconsciously gripping his horse's reins tighter. Merlin's father died half a decade ago and this was the first time Arthur was hearing about it. Hell, he hadn't even been aware Merlin found his father.

"He never mentioned the man to you?" Gwaine asked curiously, glancing back at the blond.

"Once, in passing, but I was under the assumption the man abandoned his family."

"Not everyone's' fathers abandon them, Arthur," Gwaine stated bitterly, looking forward again. "Besides, when Merlin talked about his father, he sounded proud of him. You could tell he missed him."

Arthur felt something cold and bitter settle in his stomach. He had been Merlin's friend longer than Gwaine had, so why did Merlin feel the need to talk about his father to a virtual stranger when he could have just been talking to Arthur? It made him wonder what else Merlin was hiding from him.

"I'm sure he had his reasons for not telling you," Gwaine said cutting into Arthur's dark thoughts. "Don't go jumping to conclusions until you have all the facts. You might not like the outcome."

Arthur barely had time to contemplate what Gwaine said before the air shifted, the familiar feel of magic settling over Arthur along with the familiarity he still couldn't seem to shake. They had finally reached the mysterious lake.

"I don't see her," Gwaine whispered, his dark eyes darting around the immediate area.

"Keep looking, she can't have…" Arthur's words died in his throat as he and Gwaine were both forced from their horses, landing heavily on the ground a few dozen meters away.

**Merlin**

Every time Merlin tried to direct his horse one way, his vision would double or blur and he'd forget which way he was going. It didn't help matters that voices kept whispering to him, demanding to know why he killed them, commanding he take his own life, make up for what he had did, avenge their deaths.

He tried ignoring these voices, focusing on the fact that he had to save Gwaine and Arthur. Amelia could have already attacked them; they could already be lost, lying at the bottom of Avalon, dead and forgotten.

_No_, Merlin thought forcibly. He may not know exactly how much of a head start his friends had, but it couldn't have been more than a half an hour. He still had time, they still had time. He was going to make it in time. He had to make it in time.

Shaking his head to clear it, Merlin directed his horse towards Avalon, willing it to move just a bit faster.

**Merlin**

Arthur picked himself up, off the ground, holding his aching side. He glanced over at Gwaine, the knight standing next to him, his nose bleeding, more blood rolling down his face from a gash across the side of his head, his sword held tightly in his hand.

"Amelia!" he called, slowly turning in a circle, sliding Excalibur from its sheath. "Amelia! Show yourself!"

"Was that an order, Arthur?" a familiar voice asked and she appeared in front of them, a smirk on her pale face.

"What did you do to Merlin?" Gwaine demanded before Arthur could open his mouth.

"Now, now, let the adults speak, dear knight," Amelia stated clapping her hands. Gwaine clutched at his throat, finding himself unable to speak. "Much, much better." She turned back to Arthur, her smirk more of a grin now, and said, "You're here to help Merlin." It wasn't a question.

"Reverse what you did and I will allow you to live," Arthur said as calmly as possible, trying to be diplomatic when the only thing he really wanted to do was run her through. He held eye contact, showing that he was willing to bargain with her. What he wasn't expecting was for her to cackle, her head tilting back, blue sparks seeming to flash from her fingertips.

"I don't care if you kill me," she said when she calmed down, her dark eyes meeting his blue ones. "Run me through, chop my head off, hang me. I don't care; just as long as your _servant_ goes with me."

"You are aware, if I were to do those things, your spell would be broken and Merlin would be just fine," Arthur pointed out.

"Who said I was going to let you do those things right this second," Amelia retorted and Arthur was sent flying again. Both he and Gwaine hit a nearby tree, colliding into the ground hard enough to knock the air from their lungs, the latter staying down while the former struggled to his feet.

"I just need you out of the way for a few hours and my spell will be complete. Emrys will be dead, and my people can rest knowing we have eliminated our biggest threat."

"Who?" Arthur had never heard the name Emrys, and he definitely never heard it in reference to Merlin. Was there another Amelia had attacked?

"Oh, Arthur, I guess you'll never know all those dirty little secrets your servant has been keeping from you," Amelia said in faux-sympathy. She was the second person to tell Arthur Merlin was keeping things from him, and a wave of betrayal fought to take hold of him, but he forced it down, remembering what Gwaine said about needing all the facts.

He lunged forward, swinging his sword at her. She dove to the side, barely avoiding the blow, rolling to her feet, pulling her own sword from the sheath at her side. She swung at Arthur, but he easily blocked the attack, knocking her sword away from him.

"Impressive sword," she commented as they engaged in battle. "Dragon blade if I'm not mistaken." Arthur grunted, jumping back, narrowly avoiding getting jabbed. "Did your servant give it to you?"

"No," Arthur replied swinging high, his blade nicking her shoulder. She gasped, barely managing to keep hold of her sword, her eyes flashing dangerously. "I pulled it from a stone." There was no way he was telling her that Merlin had indirectly given it to him.

"So the legends were true," she said softly, taking another swing at him.

"What legends?" Arthur asked, easily blocking the swing.

"Well, well, well," she started slowly, ignoring his question "we can expect great things from the once and future king." She attacked a final time, Arthur meeting the attack head on. Surprisingly, her sword glowed an eerie blue and a burst of magic slammed into his chest. It felt like lightening had struck him, sending him backwards into the water.

Arthur's head barely broke the surface before hands immediately grabbed him and started dragging him under.

**Merlin**

Merlin could tell his horse did not appreciate the magic boost, but the trick worked and the young warlock sensed the magic as he neared Avalon. He left his horse a ways away, leaving the poor thing to catch its breath, and started staggering towards a clump of bushes. He could hear the unmistakable sounds of sword fighting followed by a voice saying, "We can expect great things from the once and future king."

Merlin sped up, bursting through the bushes in time to see Arthur go flying, landing in the lake with a great splash. Merlin watched as Arthur's head broke the surface, and, in stomach sinking horror, as he began struggling, some invisible force dragging him back into the depths of the lake.

The young warlock tried to move forward, but a wave of dizziness rolled through him, bringing him to his hands and knees. He breathed through it, the ground beneath him feeling as if it were swaying back and forth.

"Look at the all mighty Emrys now," Amelia mocked from above him. She kicked out, her foot connecting with his left wrist, and sent Merlin to the ground. "They told me I should fear you, but they were wrong. You are nothing more than a weak, pathetic little boy." She drilled her foot into his left side, flipping him over onto his back, sending a sharp pain through his body. "When you die," she started softly, crouching down near his head, "I'll show the magical community that Emrys was just as mortal as everyone else."

She raised her hand, Merlin feeling the magic crackling in the air. He tried to think of a spell, any spell, to stop her attack, but the voices were getting worse. He just couldn't summon his magic, but before Amelia could cast her spell, a sword burst through her stomach, her words dying in her throat.

"Go to hell," Gwaine hissed yanking his sword from her torso. With a choked cough, Amelia fell into the lake, sinking to the bottom.

Merlin struggled to get to his feet, staggering towards the lake, one arm wrapped protectively around his torso, the voices thankfully gone. He couldn't see Arthur anymore, and a jolt of fear attacked his stomach, but a wave of relief rolled through him as the blond resurfaced, gasping for breath, holding Excalibur tightly in his hand.

"Arthur," Merlin called weakly, his vision blurring. The voices came back full force, seeming almost more demanding than last time. All the warlock would have to do is step forward, submerge himself into the lake, and allow himself to sink to the bottom.

"Merlin," someone screamed his name, bringing him back to reality just as arms wrapped around him and something slammed into his back, followed by blinding pain. "I'm taking you with me," Amelia hissed in his ear just as the two began sinking to the bottom of the lake.


	22. The Phantoms Pt 4

**This is rushed. At least, I feel as if I rushed it. I just wanted to move on, so if it seems rushed I am aware.**

**Thanks to everyone who reviewed, alerted, and favorited last chapter. You guys are amazing :)**

**Thanks for reading, drop me a comment if you can, and expect a new prompt next time.**

**Bye!**

**P.S. I don't know when this story started actually getting a semi-decent plot. It was actually supposed to be plotless, but slowly but surely it's a story aiming towards a reveal... or close to a reveal. We'll see what happens ;)**

* * *

"Merlin!" Panic shot through Arthur as he watched his friend disappear from view. He tossed his sword out of the water, barely paying attention as it clattered against the dirt shore, and immediately dove under water.

Frantically he began searching, vaguely aware of Gwaine joining him underwater, but he couldn't find any sign that Merlin had been in the water. No familiar, brown jacket, no dark head of hair, no obnoxiously bright smile, there wasn't even any blood, and Arthur had been fairly certain Amelia had stabbed him; there was nothing. Merlin was just gone.

"He's not gone," Gwaine snapped pulling Arthur back from his downward spiral. The blond hadn't even been aware he was speaking out loud, and now he felt annoyance settle in his stomach. Except, he wasn't annoyed with Gwaine; he was annoyed with himself.

"Let's keep searching," Arthur suggested and Gwaine nodded, the two diving underwater again with renewed determination. Even if Arthur had to search all night, he was going to find his friend, and he knew Gwaine would do the same.

**Merlin**

Merlin awoke to fingers running through his hair. He felt relatively light, could sense the magic swirling around him, leaving him warm and with a sudden, overwhelming sense of _home_. He peeled his eyelids open, bottle blue eyes scanning the bright, white area he lay in.

"I was hoping you would awake," a familiar voice stated and Merlin tipped his head back, finding himself laying in Freya's lap, the woman in question slowly stroking his hair.

"Freya," he whispered reaching for her free hand. She allowed him to take it, leaning forward to press a kiss to his forehead. "W-where am I?"

"Avalon," she replied quietly, her voice muffled against his hair.

Merlin recalled Amelia coming up behind him, followed by sharp pain in his back. There was no doubt that Amelia had stabbed him, no doubt hoping to kill him before she succumbed to her own injuries. It left him feeling hollow that she had actually succeeded. That is, if she _had_ succeeded. "Am I…? Am I dead?"

"No," Freya responded quietly, shaking her head back and forth. "But you are not completely well, either. I brought you here to heal."

"You said you could not help me."

"And at the time I couldn't," Freya murmured sitting up and resuming her original task, her fingers lightly running through Merlin's hair. "But this, this I can help you with."

"What about Amelia?"

"She is no longer a concern."

They fell into a heavy silence. Merlin contemplated what Freya had just told him, feeling himself relax as she continued to pet his hair. Amelia was dead. Gwaine, or possibly Freya, had killed her. While a part of Merlin felt bad for the sidhe, she was a living being after all, a much bigger part just couldn't bring himself to care that she was dead.

"Arthur will be looking for me," Merlin commented after a beat, looking up to meet Freya's blue eyes.

"When you return, it will be as if no time has passed," she stated with a warm smile. "I've missed you dearly, Merlin."

"As have I you," Merlin responded with a watery smile.

"But I must tell you," she continued her hand leaving his hair to caress his cheek, "that my death, all those deaths, were not your fault. Balinor and Will died protecting you and everyone you love, and I, I died because of a curse put upon my by a vengeful woman."

"I know, but…"

"No buts," she said placing her fingertips over his lips, cutting him off. "We do not blame you. You should not blame yourself. And as for Arthur discovering your secret…" she trailed off, Merlin's body tensing. "He may surprise you," Freya finished before leaning forward and softly kissing his lips.

"We must part ways now," she stated as the room started to dim. "I will always love you, my Merlin."

Before Merlin could respond, or even reach out for her, he suddenly found himself taking in a lot of water. He fought to get to the surface, a pair of arms encircling him, startling him, and he panicked, instinctually attempting to fight his potential attacker off, but a familiar, blond head of hair stopped his struggles in their tracks.

He and Arthur broke the surface, both coughing violently, and the blond immediately began toting the warlock back towards shore. Once on land, Arthur let him go and fell backwards, covering his blue eyes with his hands, just breathing deeply.

Gwaine fell heavily down onto Merlin's right, glancing over at him with a forced grin on his face, his eyes a flurry of fear, concern, and pleading to never, ever, ever scare him like that again. "I'm fine," Merlin whispered hoarsely, reassuring not just Gwaine but Arthur, too. "I'm fine."

**Merlin**

Arthur had given Merlin three days before he decided to confront the younger man. Gaius insisted Arthur wait a while longer, but the blond just couldn't keep his questions at bay any longer. He sat at the foot of Merlin's bed, watching as Gaius changed the younger man's bandages (and, lucky for Merlin, and a little suspicious to Arthur, the cut had hardly been a flesh wound).

"I will just be outside," Gaius said when he finally finished, gathering his supplies and leaving the room, shooting Arthur a 'be cautious' type look before shutting the door behind him. Arthur didn't need to be reminded, he knew Merlin had nearly died twice in so many weeks; he wasn't going to be harsh and uncaring. Or, at the very least, he would try not to be.

"How are you feeling?" Arthur started off, figuring he could ease into the whole 'so, tell me about your father. Oh, and while you're at it, explain to me why two different enemies have claimed you have broken the law. And if you have, please tell me the truth so I can figure out just how to proceed without having to actually hurt you' conversation.

"I've had worse," Merlin answered truthfully, leaning back into his pillows. He was trying to look relaxed, but Arthur could tell, just by his eyes alone, that Merlin was pretty far from relaxed. He looked tense, maybe a little worried, and, if Arthur wasn't mistaken, he caught a flash of fear flickering in those bottle blue eyes.

"Merlin, I…"

The door burst open, cutting Arthur off, and Gwaine, Leon, Percival, and Elyan ambled in, Gwaine carrying a jar of ale while the other three tried to convey that this had not been their idea with their eyes.

"We wanted to see if Merlin was doing well," Leon stated before Gwaine could open his mouth. "We were not planning on the party."

"Why the hell not, gents?" Gwaine questioned with an easy-going grin, taking a swig from his jar. "We have a lot to celebrate. Merlin, our dear friend, has thwarted death again. He has met it head on and laughed." For good measure, Gwaine threw his head back and laughed a short, bark-like laugh, taking another swig.

"We could come back," Elyan suggested when he realized they had interrupted something.

"No," Arthur replied suddenly not wanting to discuss this at that moment. "We'll talk later." He told Merlin before getting to his feet, heading towards the door. "Take care of him," he informed Percival as he walked out.

"Was he talking about Merlin?" Gwaine asked curiously.

"I seriously doubt it," Percival and Elyan said together, earning them a chuckle from Leon.

As Arthur headed down the three steps, he glanced over his shoulder at Merlin, the younger man watching him curiously. He waved, a wan smile on his face, and Arthur returned the wave, trying and failing to smile back. He knew he and Merlin needed to have a nice, long talk about everything that had transpired over the past few weeks, but in order to do that Arthur needed more time to sort through it himself. Of course, like Gwaine said, he needed all the facts, and the majority of the facts resided with Merlin.

Arthur just hoped Merlin gave him every last detail when they eventually did have their talk.


	23. The Hat

**I do plan to write 'The Talk' soon, but since we just got through a doozy of a story (I mean, the last few chapters all tied in together) I decided to do a couple oners before returning to the plot. So, this one goes out to Morgana Pendragon who asked for Merlin getting cursed with bad luck. I realize you probably wanted it to be angsty and full of whump, but I decided on a funny thing.**

**So, thanks for reading. I don't own anyone. And thank you to everyone who reviewed, alerted, and favorited last chapter.**

**Drop me a comment if you can!**

* * *

"Here, Merlin, take this ghastly thing and burn it," Arthur stated as he, his servant, Leon, and Gwaine rode back towards Camelot. He shoved a jester's hat at Merlin, a gag gift given to Arthur by a young knight.

"Isn't that a little harsh, Arthur?" Merlin questioned looking down at the hat. There was something a little off about the thing, nothing evil just strange, but the warlock couldn't figure out what that was exactly. "Sir Isaac put a lot of thought into this gift." Actually, it looked as if Sir Isaac bought the first thing he saw, but Merlin's mother had taught him never to take a gift for granted.

"Isaac and I give each other stupid things like that _all_ the time," Arthur explained, in a tone that suggested he was talking to a two year old. "He's probably expecting me to burn it."

"Well, I like it," Gwaine stated taking the hat from Merlin. He then shoved it on the warlock's head, his face splitting into a grin.

"You know, Merlin, I might need a new Court Jester," Arthur commented smirking at Merlin's disgruntled look.

"Very funny," Merlin grumbled yanking the hat off his head. Surprisingly, the mysterious 'wrongness' had dissipated from the hat. Eyebrows scrunched up, Merlin shook his head. Perhaps he had been imagining the wrongness.

The quartet continued riding, Gwaine cheerfully telling them about a dream he had had where he was given an apple pie the size of his head. "And it tasted, I shite you not, like turkey. It was, by far, the most delicious pie I had ever had."

"Why is it that your dreams are either about coitus or apple pie tasting like meat?" Leon questioned curiously.

"Oh, that reminds me," Gwaine exclaimed, ignoring Leon's question, and launching into a rather inappropriate dream he had had about the new barmaid. He had just gotten to a particularly raunchy part, when suddenly something swooped down at Merlin's horse, spooking it. It jumped up on its hind legs, knocking the warlock off the back.

He hit the ground hard, the air knocked from his lungs. Gasping for breath, very much aware of his friends scrambling from their horses to come to his aid, Merlin watched as a bird swooped at his horse a second time before flying away.

"Are you okay, mate?" Gwaine asked worriedly hauling the warlock to his feet.

"Y-yeah," Merlin stammered nodding, uninjured but shaken. "I'm fine."

As Leon chased after Merlin's horse, Arthur stooped down to pick up the hat Merlin had dropped. He held it out for the warlock, a smirk on his face, and asked, "Are you sure you don't want to be Court Jester?"

"Ha ha," Merlin retorted sarcastically and pushed past Arthur, moving towards his newly caught horse, led by Leon. Instead of getting back on, he just took the reins and started walking back towards Camelot.

**Merlin**

The rest of the journey back was met with a few more mishaps, but the knights and Arthur brushed them off as Merlin's usual clumsiness. Merlin, on the other hand, was left with a sense of worry. He was clumsy, yes, but never this bad.

He left his horse with the stable boys, but as he walked away he tripped over his feet, skinning his knee on the cobblestone pathway as he landed on the ground. Hissing, he ignored Arthur's, "If I didn't know any better I'd say you were drunk."

As quickly as he could go without another incident, Merlin went back to Gaius' chambers, clutching tightly to his bag. He burst into the room, about to call for his uncle, but the words caught in his throat when he ran into the entryway.

"Ow," he muttered clutching his arm.

"Merlin?" Gaius called from above. "Is everything alright?"

"No," Merlin answered truthfully, dropping his bag onto the table. "I think I've been cursed."

"Not again," Gaius stated quickly climbing down the ladder. He rushed towards his nephew, already asking him what sort of creature they had run into, but Merlin held up his hand and said, "Not that type of cursed, Gaius."

"Then what?" The elderly man's eyebrows were raised in inquiry as he eyed the younger man cautiously.

"I can't stop tripping over things," Merlin whispered and Gaius' eyebrows furrowed.

"Merlin, you may not be as clumsy as Arthur depicts you, but I've seen…"

"No, you don't understand," the warlock continued quickly. "It started with my horse bucking me off. That one incident could have been a coincidence, since Winter has been sick and I've been riding Midnight, but after that I tripped over a root, stepped in something that may or may not been a dead animal, skinned my knee outside the castle, run into the doorway…"

"Merlin, those _all _could be coincidences," Gaius pointed out patiently.

"One or two maybe, but that's way too many incidents to be coincidences. Someone cursed me or, or that…" Merlin's eyes widened and he smacked himself in the forehead. "I knew there was something off about that hat," he whispered noticing the questioning look on his uncle's face. "Arthur was given a hat by Sir Isaac, and he told me they give each other gifts like that all the time, but it seems Isaac has resorted to witchcraft or…" Merlin trailed off, noting the small chuckle coming from Gaius. "What?"

"Isaac and Arthur have been friends for years, Merlin. They pull pranks like this all the time. Last time Arthur gave Isaac a pendant that turned Isaac's hair green."

"B-but sorcery…"

"It's not really sorcerer. At least, the sorcerers cannot be punished since they have long since died. They're mostly just traveler traps sold throughout the kingdoms."

"B-but I…" Merlin tried to wrap his head around this childish act, but it left him still very much confused. "He actually participates in things such as this? And Uther never berated him for it."

"Uther never knew," Gaius informed Merlin returning to his ladder. "It'll wear off by the end of the day, so just stay out of trouble until then."

"But…"

Gaius seemed to have dismissed Merlin. With a sigh, the warlock turned and headed back outside, carefully maneuvering around everything to avoid another injury. So, he was cursed but not really cursed, and he actually thought he knew everything about Arthur.

**Merlin**

Arthur spotted Merlin from his window, watching as the younger man tripped over his feet and knocked a maid to the floor. Usually, Arthur would roll his eyes at this, already used to Merlin's clumsy nature, but it had never been this bad. Once or twice in a week was one thing, but six different incidences, in the same day? Something was not right.

The king turned, his eyes settling on the ugly, jester hat sitting on his table. Eyebrows furrowed, he crossed the room, picking it up. He studied the hat for a few moments, finally finding a familiar stamp from a vendor he had frequented in his travels; particularly when he was about to visit Sir Isaac.

Partially amused, partially guilty, Arthur sat down to write a strongly worded letter to Isaac, asking him to refrain from doing anymore pranks. The last thing Arthur needed was Merlin getting hurt because of his stupid 'war' with Isaac.

* * *

**I know, not exactly a big 'protecting Merlin' scene, but I tried.**

**Bye!**


End file.
